Jobs focus welcome… but where do the jobs go?

Featured, State of the Union — By PolicyLink on January 28, 2010 at 11:34 am

The following is a statement from PolicyLink CEO Angela Glover Blackwell on President Obama’s first State of the Union address:

“A recovery that merely recreates our inequitable pre-recession economy is no recovery at all. Throughout his first year and his first State of the Union address, President Obama has made it clear that all Americans deserve to live in opportunity-rich communities. He has listened to and learned from those closest to our nation’s challenges.

During the first year of Obama’s tenure, PolicyLink and our allies have:

Pushed for greater investment in green jobs. The president listened.
Advocated for career ladders that help a job turn into a lifelong profession. The president listened.
Argued that job training is crucial to creating a sustainable, flexible 21^st Century workforce. The president listened.
Shown that hiring local residents and steering projects to local, minority-owned businesses has a phenomenal impact on a community. The president listened.

Of course, listening is just the first step. We must now put these ideas and innovations into practice. The path is clear…the president and all allies of equity in America must now walk that path with purpose. A true national recovery depends on it.”

Tags: Barack Obama, congress, Economy, equity, Health, health care, Housing, Obama, Politics, Politics News, Poverty, President Obama, Public Option, Racial Equity, reform, sotu, state of the union

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Author: PolicyLink (4 Articles)

PolicyLink is a national research and action institute advancing economic and social equity by Lifting Up What Works. Founded in 1999, PolicyLink connects the work of people on the ground to the creation of sustainable communities of opportunity that allow everyone to participate and prosper. Such communities offer access to quality jobs, affordable housing, good schools, transportation, and the benefits of healthy food and physical activity. Guided by the belief that those closest to the nation’s challenges are central to finding solutions, PolicyLink relies on the wisdom, voice, and experience of local residents and organizations. Lifting Up What Works is our way of focusing attention on how people are working successfully to use local, state, and federal policy to create conditions that benefit everyone, especially people in low-income communities and communities of color. We share our findings and analysis through our publications, website and online tools, convenings, national summits, and in briefings with national and local policymakers. Our work is grounded in the conviction that equity—just, fair, and green inclusion—must drive all policy decisions.