The Real Cost of Prisons Weblog

In response to former Congressman Ron Dellums Commission's latest series of reports including "A Way Out: Creating Partners for Our Nation's Prosperity By Expanding Life Paths of Young Men of Color," Its goal was to give public and private sectors recommendations on how to reverse the negative social, economic and educational trends happening among young men of color.

"It was an amazing moment," said Gail Christopher, the director of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies' Health Policy Institute. The Washington-based think tank sponsored the commission's reports.

"It had all these burly, robust, tall, labor guys standing there saying, 'we have to take our country back and it starts with young men of color. It was amazing'," she said.

According to the Commission's report that was also released last week, it's going to take efforts of large groups like the AFL-CIO and many others to save minority males, especially African Americans, who account for the worst high school graduation and mortality rates in comparison to their White counterparts.

The commission reported, "more than 29 percent of African- American males who are 15 years old today are more likely to go to prison at some point in their lives compared to 4.4 percent of White males of the same age."

Christopher said a number of issues have to be addressed in order to end the "pipeline" to prison and the commission recommendations try to tackle the underlying issues hinder the progress and success of young minority men.

"We've put policies in place that exacerbate that historic problem. We expel them now from school at the drop of a hat through zero tolerance programs, we have disinvested in mental health care so when they have substance abuse problems or other types of challenges, from the standpoint of behavior and mental health, they go to jail instead of to treatment. We're warehousing our young people in jails where they learn to be criminals. That is wrong," she said.

The Dellums Commission, which is chaired by former Congressman and Mayor-elect of Oakland, Calif., Ronald V. Dellums, was formed by the HPI to analyze policies that affect young men of color and to develop action plans to improve their lives. The commission members, Christopher said, come from a variety of backgrounds.

"We didn't just fill it with thinkers and analysts. We filled it with judges and legislators and superintendents of schools and psychiatrists-people who live with these populations and treat them and understand something's got to be done."

Increasing the minimum wage; extending health care coverage to all uninsured children through the age of 18 who aren't covered by state programs; repealing mandatory minimum sentences for drug-related crimes were among some of the commission's recommendations.

Helen Kanovsky, Chief Operating Officer AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, said the AFL-CIO is equally excited about the new initiative, and has been successful in similar ventures. To date, Kanovsky said the AFL-CIO has provided job skills and apprenticeship programs for years and spends more than $500 million annually for programs at 2,000 training centers across the country.

"They (the commission) talked with a large number of corporations as well, but it was labor that stepped up first. Labor stepped up and said we hear what you say, we've read your report, we agree and we're here to help and here's what we propose as our first step with you in implementing some of your recommendations," Kanovsky said.

The organization was among many, including the Congressional Black Caucus that received advanced copies of the commission's report. Christopher said the CBC was responsive to the recommendations and vowed to share them with other legislators.

For the AFL-CIO program, Kanovsky said the organization wanted to do a more comprehensive program with not only job training but job placement and mentoring programs.

"It's on the job training, apprenticeship, distance learning-we have a significant role for the national labor college-this includes setting up an E-learning center with satellite facilities," she said.

"The plan is to create something we call an anchor facility, which is a physical center to all of this where there is a place for community partnerships for labor, for business, for media for mentoring. We've talked to a number of people in the sports world who are interested in participating in the mentoring piece."

Kanovsky said New Orleans was an obvious choice for the location of the Pilot program especially with the rebuilding efforts that will allow the young men hands-on experience on construction sites doing a range of skillful jobs as electricians or bricklayers.

Currently, the AFL-CIO is scouting buildings for the "anchor facility" and a date has not been set for the opening, but Kanovsky said the location of the facility is expected to be decided in the coming months.

"It really builds on the kinds of things the labor movement has done for a long time, which is find a way to take people, give them a skill set and put them on the road to a middle class economic life," she said of the new initiative.

"That's how you sustain communities. And that's how you give people real hope and opportunity. You give them the skills that lead to the jobs that lead to the income that make them be not just productive members of society but let them achieve their personal goals of being able to support themselves, (and) support their families."

s%20Young%20Men%20of%20Color%22&author=By%20Lorinda%20M%2E%20Bullock%2C%20NN
PA%20National%20Correspondent&date=November%2027%2C%202006> talkback