WASHINGTON (AP) — The top-ranking African-American in Congress is calling on President Barack Obama to sharpen his focus on hard-hit minority communities in his plans for bolstering the economy.
Democratic Representative James Clyburn of South Carolina said the recession has devastated communities of color, leaving them with extraordinarily high unemployment rates. He said previous government recovery programs have left minorities behind.
Clyburn called on Obama and Congress to broadly incorporate a so-called "10-20-30" policy directing at least 10 percent of any recovery efforts into communities with 20 percent poverty rates for 30 years.
His comments came as the liberal Center for American Progress released a report on minority economic conditions. The report emphasized that blacks, Latinos and other minorities are struggling far more than whites to find jobs and keep their homes.
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