Presidential nominee Kamala Harris is being praised for her direct pitch to Black men after months of concern over the traditionally Democratic voters swaying toward the Republican Party — or staying home — this election cycle.
While some Democratic circles have downplayed the worry over Black male voters, pointing out that Black men are the second most loyal voting bloc after Black women, others have fretted over various polling indicating a small but sizable shift of Black men supporting Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump.
“The issues that we care about more times than not are the same across people, but there’s deeper urgency and greater responsibility for us to be focused when it comes to Black men,” Michael Blake, a former Obama White House alum and CEO of KAIROS Democracy Project, told theGrio.
On Monday, Vice President Harris unveiled her “Opportunity Agenda for Black Men.” According to the Harris-Walz campaign, the comprehensive plan is primarily aimed at helping Black men secure financial freedom and lower costs to “better provide for themselves and their families and protect their rights.”
Harris is proposing up to 1 million “fully forgivable” startup business loans for Black entrepreneurs and advancing the number of good-paying jobs in “high-demand industries” for Black men through education, training and mentorship programs. She also calls for a “regulatory framework” for cryptocurrency and other digital assets so that Black men’s investments are protected.
The Kamala Harris plan for Black men goes further to address health care. The Democratic presidential nominee proposes launching a national health equity initiative focused on Black men, who are disproportionately impacted by mental health, prostate cancer, diabetes and other health challenges. Harris is also calling for the legalization of recreational marijuana and “creating opportunities” for Black Americans to “succeed in this new industry.”
“It is the most direct Black men policy I can recall of a presidential candidate,” said Blake, who served in various roles in former President Barack Obama’s administration and Obama’s 2012 presidential campaign.
Blake said Harris’ proposals for Black men are a “game changer.”
“It is specific, it is clear, it is practical,” he told theGrio. “It will lead to us creating jobs, making money, saving lives and having justice.”
Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright said Harris’ policy agenda reflects the kind of policies Black men “wish they had a candidate who could speak to” and that they are often talking about at the “barbershop … at the spades table, the fraternity meetings, after the basketball game at the rec center.”
“It summarizes why she’s a once-in-a-generation candidate,” Seawright told theGrio.
By contrast, Democrats point out that Trump and Republicans have no substantive plan for Black men. In fact, they say Republican policies would cause them further harm.
“[Trump] has a deep, dark history of treating Black men like second-class citizens,” said Seawright, noting Trump’s calling for the Central Park Five to be executed for crimes they didn’t commit and pushing the racist birther conspiracies about Obama, America’s first Black president.
“Donald Trump is a walking and talking threat to Black men,” he continued. “Everything he has stood for, and everything he stands for literally, will undermine the progress that we made and jeopardize the Black family unit.”
Blake noted that Trump has taken credit for “what other people did” — namely Congress — including a stimulus check during the COVID-19 pandemic and criminal justice reform through the First Step Act. Even beyond that, Blake said, determining an election should be based on what you will do and not what you claim to have done.
“Can anyone actually say what [Trump] will actually do to help Black men?” he queried.
Blake continued, “You have a Black woman who is laying out a policy for you to make money and to stay alive, [and] you have a continual racist white supremacist in Donald Trump who has literally called for the death of Black people and the destruction of Black communities.”
Harris has made direct appeals to Black men even before she emerged as the party’s nominee after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race. As vice president, Kamala Harris hosted Black male leaders at her Washington, D.C., residence and convened Black male entrepreneurs at the White House focused on helping them scale their businesses. She also embarked on an “Economic Opportunity Tour” to engage Black men across the country, inviting Black male celebrities like D.L. Hughley and Michael Ealy to participate.
In September, during a sit-down interview with the National Association for Black Journalists, theGrio asked Harris directly about concerns related to her support among Black men.
“Black men are like any other voting group; you’ve got to earn their vote,” Harris told theGrio. “So I’m working to earn the vote. Not assuming I’m going to have it because I am Black.”
Similar to her agenda released on Monday, Kamala Harris said at the time that her approach is “understanding the obstacles that traditionally and currently exist to allow anyone, including Black men, to be able to achieve economic wealth.” She added, “I’m going to tell you I don’t think it is sufficient to only talk about economic policy around reducing unemployment.”
As advocates travel the country engaging with Black male voters, they say that while Black men have real concerns about the direction of the country and where they fit in it, the concern about a flood of Black men running to the Republican Party is overblown.
“It’s definitely not to the degree that’s being said,” noted Blake.
Seawright, who agreed, said a “large portion” of the skepticism and cynicism of Black men toward Harris or the Democratic Party is the result of “constant” misinformation and disinformation.
“They’re consuming their news and information, primarily on their devices and online,” he lamented. However, Seawright warned that Black men who “participate the least” in the 2024 election are “those who are impacted the most.”
Seawright said electing Harris and Democrats will also elevate prominent Black men in Congress who will ultimately center Black men and their communities, including U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., who could become the first Black speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.
The Democratic insider said voters also have the chance to elect a Black man, Rep. Colin Allred, to the U.S. Senate in Texas, and give Democrats the majority in the House, which would lead to more Black men in leadership positions, including Rep. Joe Neguse of Colorado, who could become assistant speaker of the House.
“In every major social movement in the history of this world, Black men have always been on the front line … and we’ve always stepped up to do our little Black jobs,” said Seawright.
“The world is depending on us. The country is depending on us. The constitution is depending on us … [and] our community is depending on us.”