The Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal is a BFD for Black Michiganders. This once-in-a-generation investment in good paying jobs, infrastructure, and broadband internet access will support folks from Houghton to Detroit. Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes released the following statement celebrating the impacts it will make on Black communities across the state:
“In 2020, Black voters in Wayne County, Oakland County, and every corner of the state delivered a historic win for President Biden with the hopes that he would make good on his promise to address critical problems like replacing lead pipes, rebuilding roads and bridges, and updating infrastructure to protect Michiganders from extreme weather events.
“Less than a year later, President Biden is delivering for Black Michiganders with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Thanks to the leadership of the Biden-Harris administration, Gov. Whitmer, and Democrats in Congress, neighborhoods across Michigan will be safer, healthier, and more connected, and Black Michiganders will experience an enhanced quality of life for generations to come.”
Here’s how the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal will deliver for Black Michiganders:
- Ensuring every Michigan household has access to reliable high-speed internet, helping lower costs and improving internet access for Black Americans who are 9% less likely than their white peers to have high-speed internet.
- Eliminating lead pipes and providing the largest investment in clean drinking water in American history. Lower-income families of color in Michigan are at the highest risk for lead exposure at home and in schools.
- Investing in public transit, reducing commute times, and addressing the backlog of repairs. In Detroit, 92% of transit riders identify as Black. Additional funds for public transportation will expand the amount of accessible jobs by up to 50,000.
- Reconnecting communities divided by inequitable transportation infrastructure. The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will create the first-ever program aimed at reconnecting communities divided by transportation infrastructure that was built through Black neighborhoods, destroying homes, schools, churches and parks.
- The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will invest roughly $65 billion — the single largest investment in clean energy transmission in American history — to upgrade our power infrastructure and reduce pollution. Black people are almost 5 times more likely to die from asthma-related causes than our white counterparts.
- Remediating brownfields and Superfund sites. 26% of Black Americans live within 3 miles of Superfund sites that can lead to elevated lead levels in our children’s blood. By providing $21 billion to cleanup efforts, the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will help protect our children while providing good-paying union jobs to our communities.
