Black women have reason to celebrate amid the dismal employment numbers. In June, the black female unemployment rate dropped for the second straight month, from 12.4 percent to 11.8 percent. This is, once again, the largest unemployment drop among any ethnic or gender group in America.
Black men, on the other hand, have almost nothing to celebrate about this month's data. The unemployment rate for African American males jumped again, from 17.1 percent to 17.4 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
White Americans saw their unemployment rate rise slightly, from 8.8 to 8.9 percent, a significantly lower rate than black female unemployment and about half the unemployment rate for African American males.
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Female Heroes
Madame Walker Madame C.J. Walker Madam Walker ( misspelled) Born: December 23, 1867 Died: May 25, 1919 Birthplace: Delta, Louisiana on the Burney family plantation. Madame C.J. Walker (Sarah Breedlove McWilliams Walker): Inventor, Businesswoman In 1905 Sarah Breedlove developed a conditioning treatment for straightening hair. Starting with door-to-door sales of her cosmetics, Madame C.J. Walker amassed a fortune. In 1910 she built a factory in Indianapolis to manufacture her line of cosmetics. Before her death in 1919 she was a millionaire, one of the most successful business executives in the early half of the twentieth century. MADAM C. J. WALKER (1867-1919) Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Social Activist 1) portrait of Madam C. J. Walker 2) Madam's Vegetable Shampoo ( an original product) 3) Madam Walker with several Ohio-based Walker sales agents and beauty culturists 4) Madam Walker at the wheel of her Model T in front of her Indianapolis home.
A'Lelia Bundles, Walker Family Collection / madamcjwalker.com
FR170401 AP
BlackVoices.com
Female Heroes
This undated and unlocated file picture shows US tennis player Althea Gibson returning a backhand. According to reports, Gibson, the first black to play at US championships and the first black to win Wimbledon and the US Open, died at the age of 76 at a hospital in East Orange, NJ 28 September 2003 after years of poor health. She won the French Championship in 1956 and earned back-to-back titles at Wimbledon and the US Championships at Forest Hills in 1957-1958.
Female Heroes
U.S. Rep. Barbara Jordan of Texas responds to plaudits of the Democratic National Convention before starting her keynote speech in New York City on July 12, 1976.
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Former Illinois U.S. Senator Carol Mosely Braun smiles after she announced her withdrawal from the race for the Democratic nomination January 15, 2004 in Carroll, Iowa. Braun also lent her support for Dean by endorsing him.
Female Heroes
Gwendolyn Brooks, 68, poetry consultant to the Library of Congress and named poet laureate of the sate of Illinois in 1968, sits in the Poet Room of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., in March 1986. Brooks, who advises the Library of Congress on its literary programs and acquisitions, will end her one-year term in May.
Female Heroes
American abolitionist leader Harriet Tubman (1820 - 1913) who escaped slavery by marrying a free man and led many other slaves to safety using the abolitionist network known as the underground railway.
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Author and playwright Lorraine Hansberry is seen in this January 1959 photo.
Female Heroes
Madame Walker Madame C.J. Walker Madam Walker ( misspelled) Born: December 23, 1867 Died: May 25, 1919 Birthplace: Delta, Louisiana on the Burney family plantation. Madame C.J. Walker (Sarah Breedlove McWilliams Walker): Inventor, Businesswoman In 1905 Sarah Breedlove developed a conditioning treatment for straightening hair. Starting with door-to-door sales of her cosmetics, Madame C.J. Walker amassed a fortune. In 1910 she built a factory in Indianapolis to manufacture her line of cosmetics. Before her death in 1919 she was a millionaire, one of the most successful business executives in the early half of the twentieth century. MADAM C. J. WALKER (1867-1919) Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Social Activist 1) portrait of Madam C. J. Walker 2) Madam's Vegetable Shampoo ( an original product) 3) Madam Walker with several Ohio-based Walker sales agents and beauty culturists 4) Madam Walker at the wheel of her Model T in front of her Indianapolis home.
Female Heroes
U.S. Deputy Marshals escort six-year-old Ruby Bridges from William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, La., in Nov. 1960. The first grader is the only black child enrolled in the school, where parents of white students are boycotting the court-ordered integration law and are taking their children out of school.
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Former teacher at William Frantz Elementry school in New Orleans Barbara Henry, left, and her 1960 first grade student Ruby Bridges-Hall, pose for a portrait in Boston Friday, Jan. 16, 1998. Henry, a native of the West Roxbury district of Boston, taught then 6-year-old Ruby Bridges at the school alone in a classroom in an otherwise empty building boycotted by the mainly white parents and student body to protest integration. Henry and Bridges-Hall lectured young students in Boston Friday and intoduced amovie made about the 1960 experience.
Female Heroes
On a related side note, I spent this week doing a tour of the country of Belize in Central America. While I was there, the tour guide informed me that she and most of her friends earn a wage of $1.50 per hour, and that most people hold onto whatever job they can find. The labor market is almost completely nonexistent, and the idea of 8.9 percent unemployment would be a dream come true.
The fact that the rest of the world struggles far more than we do in the United States reminds us of just how blessed and privileged we are. All the while, the consistent cries from those who are concerned about 8.9 percent unemployment should provide context to the fact that more than 17.4 percent of all black males cannot find a job. These numbers are further exacerbated by the hundreds of thousands of Americans who've stopped looking for work and are not counted among the nation's unemployed. The fact that our nation has a black male president and black male attorney general who've never put this issue on the table is a strong reminder that the objectives of black men from Harvard and Yale might be very different from the rest of us. While we all hope that Barack Obama and Eric Holder get to keep their jobs, we must find a way to keep and create jobs for the millions of other black men who are not in the national spotlight.
Black teen unemployment jumped by nearly two percent, from 38 percent last month to 39.9 percent this month, which is alarming. The lack of teen jobs has a seriously detrimental effect on the African American community, in which teen violence continues to be a major problem. Congress should pass jobs programs for urban areas across America to create opportunities for both young people and their parents. Additionally, the greatest Achilles' heel of both the Obama administration and this Congress is the lack of targeted programs to help areas that have been hit hardest by this recession. I sometimes quietly wonder if President Hillary Clinton could have addressed this issue without having to worry about crippling racial stigmas. I guess we'll never know.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here. 
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Comments: (20)
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By: meanvee on 7/04/2010 10:08AM
I did not know that teenager unemployment was so high, almost 40 percent, I get on my 17 year old son all the time about finding a job, thought he was not really looking, but now I know he was by these numbers.
http://www.BestChoicePayday.com - recommended debt help also.
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By: gastro_man2001 on 7/04/2010 10:50AM
Why are black people surprised that they
are still financially stilted in 2010?
Read this link to find out more:
http://bit.ly/aJocm2
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By: smittyt on 7/04/2010 6:18PM
Thats one sambos opinion,so what..do you whites think one black person speak for the whole black race.Thats the kind of crap white folks like to hear.Thats the kind of talk that gives them the go head to keep spreading their racism around.You know as long as they can't blame us for our racist ways,then we can still keep sticking it to them.It's like not giving blacks a ground to stand on doing a racial complaint.
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By: Gordy on 7/06/2010 9:56AM
I live in Ohio where racism is very much alive. Corporations and employers are infiltrated by members or contacts of the kkk, neo-nazis, aryian brotherhood, etc. and will go to extremes to make sure that Blacks don't get hired or are the first fired. I've had several interviews where I could see the shame in their face when I show up and they ask, "are YOU Gordy?". Even if I am the best qualified candidate I will not get hired because no one will be the one responsible for hiring a Black because that would put them in hot water with the klan and potentially end their career.
My situation is even worse because I have filed complaints with the EEOC and it seems I am "blackballed" by most employers. I know it is illegal to "blackball" or give a negative job reference, but THEY do it anyway knowing there is not much of a chance in getting caught. One employer fired me under bogus circumstances and has surveillance on me because they know if they run into me anywhere they deserve to be retaliated upon... not because I've threatened them, but because they know what they've done. Sorryass punks!
I know other Black males having the same job search problems. We ARE qualified for these professional positions and find that the (white)individuals who get hired usually have less experience and knowledge. Some companies have quotas for minorities and they would rather have any other minority than a Black male, so Black females are hired. I have no problem with the hiring of Black females, that's great, but once they reach the quota of minorities, that's it... problem is, they will not hire another minority even if that minority the most qualified candidate (unless you're Wayne B). This has been going on forever.
Since the election, racists are becoming more aggressive. The party of NO is really trying to make President Obama look bad and some Democrats are helping them out. Bush didn't have this kind of opposition and look at the screwed up SHlT he did!
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By: Alicia on 7/04/2010 12:49PM
While I do agree that unemployment is dire, I don't agree that President Obama should emphasize unemployment among blacks. He is the President of the entire nation. As he is an intelligent person, I am sure he is well aware of the statistics...even though he does not specifically address them all the time.
Might I suggest you highlight programs that ARE working and success stories of those that have revamped their career path during this recession.
http://aliciaedwards.net/
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By: Juanita on 7/04/2010 6:15PM
WHY DON'T YOU BLAME BUSH FOR EVERYTHING THAT GOING ON. WE WOULD HAVE MONEY AND JOBS. WE SHOULDN'T BE IN A WAR CAUSE BY BUSH. HE SHOULD BE GIVING THE GOVERNMENT BACK MONEY FROM THE WAR. INSTEAD OF HIM LIVING GOOD WHILE EVERYONE ELSE TRYING TO MAKE ENDS MEET. UNITED STATES NEED TO TAKE CARE OF THERE OWN FIRST AND MIND THERE BUSINESS.AND STOP LETTING SO MANY PEOPLE INTO THIS COUNTRY GO TO ANOTHER COUNTRY LIKE EUROPE. WHY EVERYONE COMING HERE?
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By: Mercedes on 7/07/2010 3:06PM
Guess what? Obama still have the troops in Iraq. They are slowly being put out but can some black people find another way to address problems instead of blaming Bush.
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By: Deborah on 7/06/2010 9:25AM
I agree with Juanita. The economic problem started when Bush was in office. Also we are the only country that let every foreign PERSON in. You cannot go to other countries and be permitted to live and work there so easily. THAT IS WHY THERE ARE NO JOBS HERE FOR AMERICANS. MOST OF THE FOREIGNERS HAVE TAKEN THEM!!!
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By: Mercedes on 7/07/2010 3:09PM
Bush is not the sole blame for the economic purposes even though it is easy for you black people to do. Guess what? Democrats had a majority in Congress since 2007. So the purse is in their hands. Also Democrats have lead the way in the housing crisis by blocking strict legislations against Sally Mae and Freddy Mac but Barney Frank have been a chief spokesperson for those terrible countries.
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By: BG on 7/06/2010 4:04PM
Most black women are on child support. It is a source of income and so do not make the statistics of the unemployed.
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