Build Back Black

Call your elected officials to ensure the Build Back Better Act includes the economic priorities of Black Americans. 

Use the script below to guide your letter to your senator:

(Insert Date)

The Honorable__________________
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20515

RE: A BUILD BACK BETTER ACT THAT ADVANCES RACIAL EQUITY 

Dear Senator [Senator's Last Name] 

My name is [Your First and Last Name] and I am a resident of [Town/City, State]. It was great to see The Infrastructure Investments & Jobs Act signed into law on Monday, November 15, 2021, positioning our country to make historic investments in our physical infrastructure, while also creating millions of new jobs. During the same week, I was excited to learn that the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Build Back Better Act, positioning our government to address the social safety needs of our country and address long-standing racial inequities. As final negotiations on Capitol Hill are taking place, I find it imperative that I write this letter strongly urging you to support the House version of the Build Back Better Act. It includes full funding for programs and tax incentives that address the most pressing needs within the African-American Community. As your constituent, I urge you to: 

• Ensure a comprehensive Child Tax Credit (CTC). The CTC alone has the ability to benefit ninety percent of children and reduce child poverty by historic percentages, which will have a positive generational impact on low-income and middle-class communities of color across the country 
• Support two years of free community college, and lower tuition costs by supporting an enhanced Pell Grant access for low- and middle-income students at historically black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions 
• Support the expansion of Medicaid and Medicare   
• Support lowering the cost of prescription drugs 
• Support universal pre-k for all three and four-year-olds
• Support 12 weeks of paid family & medical leave for workers 
• Support investments in worker training programs  
• Support investments in affordable and low-income housing 

The Build Back Better Act, which advanced to the Senate, can be transformative and has the potential to address many historic racial inequities, which I know is your priority as an elected official. Time is running out, which is why I am reaching out to encourage swift action of this important legislation. Communities of color across the state are counting on you to ensure this once-in-a-lifetime plan comes to fruition and forever reshapes the lives of families and communities!

I look forward to hearing back from you, on where you stand on this important legislation, and what more I can do to help you advance its passage.   

Sincerely,

(Sign and print your name and remember to include your address)

To #BuildBackBlack, I pledge to:

• Continue to educate myself and my community on the Build Back Better Plan,

• Reach out to my state senators,

• Collaborate within my community, and

• Create community support systems.

Take the pledge here.

On April 21, 2021, President Biden announced the American Jobs Plan as part of the administration's Build Back Better three-part agenda to rescue, recover, and rebuild our country considering the devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic on jobs and the overall economy. The Build Back Better Agenda included the American Rescue Plan, prioritizing recovery during the pandemic, the American Families Plan, which extended child care tax credits and support for education, and the American Jobs Plan, which will address many of this country's infrastructure issues, while also creating good-paying union jobs with benefits.

As the main driver behind the American Jobs Plan, The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act seeks to invest nearly $550 billion in new spending on roads, bridges, broadband internet, water pipes, and other public works systems; hence creating upwards of 2 million jobs per year for the next decade. This once-in-a-lifetime legislation will position our country to prioritize the economic and employment needs of Black America and Black workers, which due to structural racism, has historically been overlooked and often intentionally left out of policy reform.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act has the opportunity to transform the employment landscape for the Black community by centering racial equity and creating long-term employment opportunities for Black people, which can assist in reducing the racial wealth gap. Furthermore, if the Biden-Harris Administration seeks to maintain a commitment to racial equity as noted in the Executive Order On Advancing Racial Equity, then it will be essential that Black workers, small-business owners, corporations, and agencies be prioritized in the implementation and administration of the plan.

On July 13th, 2021, the Senate Budget Committee, with the support of Leader Schumer and President Biden, announced a framework agreement of $3.5 trillion in FY2022 Budget Reconciliation instructions to enact the Build Back Better agenda.  The agreement calls for the $3.5 trillion in long-term investments to be fully offset by a combination of new tax revenues, health care savings, and long-term economic growth. In addition, the agreement would prohibit new taxes on families making less than $400,000 per year, and on small businesses and family farms. (Source: August 9, 2021 - MEMORANDUM for Democratic Senators - FY2022 Budget Resolution)