CBCF Launches New Initiatives To Support Social Justice Reform In America

The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc. (CBCF) announced today it will launch three key initiatives to support social reforms and education needed to advance the global Black community.

The foundation released a statement Tuesday, saying it will place Social Justice Policy Fellows in the U.S. Congress for two years; establish social justice scholarships for students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities and advance racial equity and human rights in research, data, analysis, and public policy related to criminal justice reform via the newly formed National Racial Equity Initiative for Social Justice (NREI).

“CBCF is answering the global call for action to honor George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and countless others in our country’s past—even predating Jim Crow—who have reached their demise at the hands of law enforcement or imprisonment due to a failed justice system,” Rep. Cedric L. Richmond, chair, CBCF’s board of directors said in a statement. “Our new initiatives will advance educational opportunities for Black students and explore reform through the policy lens of education, economic opportunity, incarceration, the courts, and law enforcement, and ultimately, propose policy solutions.”

The initiatives will be rolled out over the next 90 days according to the foundation. The initiative are part of a significant push to donate time and money to African American causes following the death of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. The deaths of Floyd, Taylor and others have lead to nationwide and worldwide protests.

“We have always envisioned a society where African Americans can realize basic human rights,” Tonya Veasey, CBCF’s interim president and CEO. “Our nation is hurting and longing after much-needed reform. With the injustices that have plagued this country and have disproportionately affected people of color, it is important that CBCF be on the right side of history to help nurture the global black community and continue to develop leaders, inform policy and educate the public.”