On Tuesday, presidential candidate Joe Biden announced his plan to combat racial inequity within the economy as a part of his “Build Back Better” economic plan.
“Nearly 18 million people are out of work. Black unemployment is at 15.4 percent, Latino employment is at 14.5 percent. Over 4 percent of Black-owned businesses — 440,000 in total reportedly had to shut down,” Biden explained in his new proposal.
The proposal includes a small business opportunity plan that will be put in place to empower small businesses owned by people of color through a “restart package” that would assist them with coming out of the pandemic fallout. The proposal will also equalize federal procurement in an effort to put a stop to inequities also seen within the federal contracting system.
Aside from Black business assistance, Biden’s plan will include the construction of 1.5 million homes and public housing units. Modernization of the criminal justice system is also a part of the plan, with automated record sealing for nonviolent offenses set to be introduced.
The proposal will be a part of Biden’s $700 billion spending plan. The first $400 billion will go towards federal purchases of American products that will be used to rebuild U.S. infrastructure. The $300 billion will go towards research and development for emerging technologies.
