Statement by Mike Bloomberg on Black History Month

"As we begin Black History Month this year, we must confront an uncomfortable truth that we have avoided for far too long: For hundreds of years, Black Americans were systematically robbed, exploited, and excluded from economic opportunity — not only through slavery, but through segregation, Jim Crow, and redlining. That legacy is still with us, and we can see it in a disturbing statistic: the typical Black family owns only one-tenth the wealth of a typical white family.

"Black history is American history, and we have much to celebrate this month, but we also have many wrongs to right. During this year's holiday weekend celebrating Dr. King, I went to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to announce a comprehensive and ambitious plan for tackling economic inequality head on. We call it the Greenwood Initiative, in honor of the prosperous Black community in Tulsa that was destroyed by a racist white mob in 1921. Our Greenwood plan will help one million Black families buy a home, double the number of Black-owned businesses, and help Black families triple their wealth over the next decade.

"To create a future where race and wealth are no longer related — and where even more Black families can live the American Dream — we must make economic inequality a top priority. And as president, I will."