Thousands show up for Black Caucus jobs fair (video)

LOS ANGELES – Below are video highlights from the final Congressional Black Caucus jobs fair/town hall meeting held on Aug. 31 here at the Crenshaw Christian Center with more than 500 people in attendance. An estimated crowd of 20,000 had lined up earlier for the CBC’s jobs fair, according to Politico.

The CBC launched a series of town halls and jobs fairs called For the People Jobs Initiative in Cleveland, Aug. 8, to bring front and center the urgent need for federal action to create jobs. Since then the tour has traveled to Detroit, Miami and Atlanta, where they have elicited a wide public response and press coverage.

At each event, CBC members have been bringing their plan for creating jobs to the people, making it clear that it’s time to stand up to fight and meet the challenge.

The CBC is calling for a bill that guarantees that any business receiving government contracts hire people in the community; that call centers, many of which are offshore, be brought back to the United States.

In Los Angeles, CBC members spoke to the need for a national jobs rally and march, and called for an extension of unemployment benefits until enough jobs are created.

In addition, they demanded the creation of a 21st century Works Progress Administration to repair the country’s infrastructure. “When people have jobs they spend money, that is how you revitalize the economy,” said Rep. Maxine Waters of California, who hosted the event.

The CBC has introduced a jobs bill Congressional Black Caucus ‘For the People’ Jobs Initiative Resolution (H. Res. 348).