Column: In helping minorities, Bloomberg gets it – USATODAY.com: ...In August, Bloomberg announced his Young Men's Initiative, which targets 315,000 black and Latino men disproportionately hurt by incarceration and unemployment. Of the $127 million in public and private funding for the three-year program, $30 million will come from Bloomberg's own pocket. But instead of just throwing money at these issues, the mayor is advocating innovative policies to break down barriers impeding these young men.
The program, which will involve multiple city agencies, aims at four areas — education and the achievement gap; employment opportunities; reforming the juvenile and criminal justice systems; and providing easier access to city health care services.
Nationally, the statistics on black and Latino young men have been nothing short of alarming:
•In 2008, of high school graduates younger than 25, 52% of Hispanic males and 44% of black males were either incarcerated or unemployed.
•In the same group, 34% of black males and 47% of Latino males were not enrolled in college or working.
•In the 25- to 34-year-old demographic, only 28% of black men and 16% of Latino men had earned a college degree, compared with 70% of Asian men and 44% white men.
