NAACP Calls for Addressing the Plight of African American Males

WHEREAS, African American males make up approximately 6.4% of the U.S. population; and

WHEREAS, African American males have been the least represented in the American success story and triumphs in the American experience; and

WHEREAS, even as America celebrates the election of President Barack Obama, the first African American male president of the United States, the plight of the majority of African American males is still quite dire; and

WHEREAS, African American males between the age of 18 and 24 are still more likely to be under the supervision of the American "justice" system than our country's higher education system; and

WHEREAS, two-thirds of African American males will be under the control of the American criminal justice system by the age of 21; and

WHEREAS, the unemployment rate among African Americans in the United States is always double the national average; African American males in many communities at the most pivotal time in their employment development see unemployment rates in many of America's most populated cities at exceeding 50%; and

WHEREAS, African American males presently make up over 40% of our U.S. prison population; and

WHEREAS, African American males between the ages of 15 and 24 are more likely to die of gunshot wounds than automobile accidents or natural causes; and

WHEREAS, African American males are more likely to be sentenced to death in criminal offenses at a rate that exceeds any other racial or ethnic minority group; and

WHEREAS, African American males are much more likely to die of prostate cancer and thrombotic disorders such as heart attack and stroke at rates that exceed their white counterparts by 10 - 12%; and

WHEREAS, the net worth of the African American community and African American males was just reported to be one-twentieth that of their white counter parts.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the NAACP calls on all of America's institutions, including but not limited to its governmental sector, its private sector and its philanthropic sector to work to craft a comprehensive strategy to bring a comprehensive solution to this all too long enduring dilemma; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that NAACP units at the local and state levels as well as the National organization, shall work comprehensively to craft and implement a tailored solution that recognizes the extraordinary nature of this continuing challenge to the American people and rejects the faulty approach that has been applied heretofore, which uses a "one-size fits all" solution that has not worked.