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Home • News

What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night’s State Of The Union Address?

When the State of the Union falls during Black History Month, we focus on the Blackness of it all
What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night's State Of The Union Address?
By Rayna Reid Rayford · Updated February 8, 2023
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Since the days of Franklin Roosevelt’s presidency, the State of the Union address typically occurs in January before a joint session of Congress in the Capitol’s House of Representatives chamber.

Given that this year’s address was in February, it coincides with our favorite time, Black History Month, because in the words of the popular meme, “I’m black every month, but this month I’m blackity black black.”

ESSENCE tuned in to watch last night, and we’re highlighting when President Biden referenced issues that impact our people during his 2023 State of the Union remarks.

01
01 Unemployment

President Biden said there was “near-record low unemployment for Black and Hispanic workers.”

As Bloomberg reports, the rate in January 2023 “fell to 5.4%, just above the rate reached in August 2019, which at 5.3% was the lowest in data stretching back to the early 1970s.”

What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night's State Of The Union Address?
Casually dressed African-American woman working on the laptop in the simple and modern space. Dominant color of the space is yellow.
02
02 Infrastructure

In discussing his legislation to invest in America’s struggling infrastructure, Biden shouted out union worker Saria Gwin-Maye (pictured below).

“For 30 years, she’s [Saria’s] been a proud member of Ironworkers Local 44, known as the ‘cowboys of the sky’ who built the Cincinnati skyline…Saria said she can’t wait to be ten stories above the Ohio River building that new bridge. God bless her. That’s pride.”

What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night's State Of The Union Address?
US President Joe Biden hugs Saria Gwin-Maye, member of Ironworkers Local 44, before speaking about the bipartisan infrastructure law in front of the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge in Covington, Kentucky, on January 4, 2023. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
03
03 Lead poisoning

According to the Centers for Disease control and Prevention (CDC), “most of the families at risk for lead poisoning each year are Black families. Research conducted on the subject over many years has shown that lead poisoning disproportionately affects Black families — particularly Black children — in the United States.”

On Tuesday, Biden addressed this additional infrastructure issue, saying “We’re also replacing poisonous lead pipes that go into 10 million homes and 400,000 schools and childcare centers, so every child in America can drink clean water.”

What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night's State Of The Union Address?
Protestors marched outside the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Monday, August 26, during the MTV Video and Music Awards to bring attention to the water crisis currently gripping the city. Newark, New Jersey currently has drinking water lead levels higher than Flint, Michigan. Children are testing positive for lead in their blood and water bottles are being distributed to residents, yet the local, state, and Federal government are doing little to address the root cause of this issue: lead corrosion contaminating Newark’s drinking water. Participating community organizations include Extinction Rebellion, the Newark Water Coalition, the Green Party of New Jersey, the Newark Water Coalition, and the New Afrikan Black Panther Party. (Photo by Karla Ann Cote/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
04
04 Tyre Nichols and police abuse

“Joining us tonight are the parents of Tyre Nichols, who had to bury him just last week,” Biden said. “There are no words to describe the heartbreak and grief of losing a child. But imagine what it’s like to lose a child at the hands of the law…I’ve never had to have the talk with my children – Beau, Hunter, and Ashley – that so many Black and Brown families have had with their children…Imagine having to worry like that every day in America.”

What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night's State Of The Union Address?
MEMPHIS, TN – FEBRUARY 01: A screen at the entrance of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church displays the celebration of life for Tyre Nichols on February 1, 2023 in Memphis, Tennessee. On January 7th, 29-year-old Nichols was violently beaten for three minutes by Memphis police officers at a traffic stop and died of his injuries. Five Black Memphis Police officers have been fired after an internal investigation found them to be directly responsible for the beating and have been charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, two charges of aggravated kidnapping, two charges of official misconduct and one charge of official oppression. (Photo by Lucy Garrett/Getty Images)
05
05 George Floyd Act

“With the support of families of victims, civil rights groups, and law enforcement, I signed an executive order for all federal officers banning chokeholds, restricting no-knock warrants, and other key elements of the George Floyd Act,” Biden shared. “All of us in this chamber, we need to rise to this moment…Let’s come together and finish the job on police reform. Do something.”

What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night's State Of The Union Address?
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – MAY 25: Terrence Floyd (C) removes his jacket to show a shirt bearing the face of his brother, George Floyd, during a vigil on May 25, 2022 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It has been two years since George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis Police. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
06
06 Diabetes and prescription costs

Per the American Heart Association, “In the U.S., Black people are twice as likely as their white counterparts to die of diabetes. They are three times as likely to end up hospitalized for diabetes-related complications. They are more than twice as likely to undergo diabetes-related leg or foot amputation. And they are more than three times as likely to have end-stage kidney disease.”

Biden discussed the costs for diabetes medication, noting, “There are…200,000 young people with Type I diabetes who need insulin to save their lives. Let’s finish the job this time. Let’s cap the cost of insulin at $35 a month for every American who needs it.”

What Black Issues Did President Biden Discuss At Last Night's State Of The Union Address?

TOPICS:  State of the Union