I Am Empowered - I am the National Urban League

Three branches of the Federal government have a significant influence on how communities are able to empower themselves -- from funding programs, writing laws and regulations, deciding what is lawful and so much more, the Federal government impacts at every level of community.

Since 1962, the National Urban League has had a formal presence in Washington, DC to ensure that the National Urban League impacts and influences the Federal government and other stakeholders in Washington, DC to achieve its goals. The office today has been renamed the National Urban League Policy Institute (NULPI).

NULPI is not a think-tank -- it’s a do-tank. Everything that NULPI does is focused on impacting and influencing the Federal government so that the National Urban League achieves its goals. When NULPI undertakes research or activities to advance its profile in Washington, DC it is done to promote legislation or other action that will have a material impact on National Urban League’s goals.

Here are some of the real results that NULPI has achieved:

1. National Urban League’s 6-point Plan for Putting America Back to Work released in November, 2010 and developed by NULPI contained a proposal to create a highly targeted $10 billion small business lending fund to assist small businesses in disadvantaged areas. NULPI actively promoted this with briefings and meetings with U.S. Congressmen, their staff and officials of Obama administration. On September 23, 2010 the U.S. Congress passed the Small Business Jobs Act 2010 that created a $30 billion lending fund that in principle was similar to the one proposed in NUL’s 6-point plan.
2. NULPI actively pushed for the creation of a Federal government agency dedicated to promoting African American interests in the financial sector -- NULPI met with U.S. Congressmen, their staff and officials of the Obama administration to promote this. On the U.S. Congress passed the Dodd – Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act 2010 that established the Office of Minority and Women Inclusion.

Here are some of the things that NULPI does to achieve these results:

1. Facilitate experts of the National Urban League to testify before the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives
2. Facilitate experts of the National Urban League to testify before Federal government agencies including the Small Business Administration and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors
3. Do cutting-edge research on current issues decided by the Federal government and actively make that research available to the U.S. Congress and others in the U.S. government
4. Provide written comments on matters being considered by the U.S. Congress and other agencies of the U.S. government
5. Take a leadership role with stakeholders and build coalitions to collaboratively push for National Urban League’s goals within the halls of government and through outside community activism
6. Track debates, bills and other legislative action to ensure that they are aligned with the National Urban League’s goals

Economic Stimulus/Jobs

During the 2009 congressional deliberations on an economic stimulus package, the National Urban League played a major role in securing investments for workforce development programs for disadvantaged adults and youth, bringing stability to neighborhoods ravaged by foreclosure, and improving educational infrastructure. In addition to letters to key members of congress, NULPI mobilized affiliates to inform congressional delegations of their tremendous needs.

Through its annual Legislative Policy Conference (LPC), NULPI brings the full force of the Urban League movement to Capitol Hill. Through a targeted common policy agenda, delegates to the LPC discuss key issues with their Senators and Representatives. In light of the impact of the recession on the millions of unemployed, in 2010, NULPI focused its policy agenda on the need to create jobs and train our workforce – especially the structurally unemployed.

Education

In 2007, Congress initiated hearings and draft legislation on the reauthorization of “No Child Left Behind.” NULPI was invited to testify and provided detailed recommendations pertaining to accountability, teacher quality, extended learning time, resource inequities in schools, data collection among other recommendations.

The Home Foreclosure Crisis

The African American community has been disproportionately devastated by the housing foreclosure crisis. The National Urban League weighed in on several fronts to not only seek mortgage reform and fair lending practices, but to also debunk the false myths that African Americans and other minorities were the cause of the home foreclosure crisis. NUL also identified and documented the key role that home ownership and financial education counseling can play in averting foreclosure, especially the role played by national intermediary community based organizations. To this end, the National Urban League testified on these issues several times before Congress.

Health Care

In 2009, the National Urban League collaborated with key civil rights leaders on a major initiative to secure comprehensive health care reform known as the “Civil Rights Health Care Reform War Room”. The NUL kept the Urban League Movement apprised of its position alerted its affiliates on the key opportunities for advocacy actions during congressional deliberations on health care reform legislation, and mobilized its affiliate communities to weigh in until legislation was finally enacted.

Civil Rights

Discrimination in housing is an issue that continues to plague our local communities in rental, sales and lending markets. The National Urban League has been a longstanding advocate of ensuring fair housing rights and has offered its support for key legislation aimed at strengthening our current fair housing laws.