U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, speaks at a campaign event held at a fire station in Redford Charter Township, Michigan on October 4, 2024.
Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
On Monday, Vice President Kamala Harris introduced her “Opportunity Agenda,” a proposal aimed at Black men that includes offering 1 million forgivable loans for Black entrepreneurs and creating new opportunities within the legalized marijuana sector.
“This agenda represents a significant step in realizing Vice President Harris’ Opportunity Economy,” stated former Rep. Cedric Richmond, a co-chair for the Harris campaign. “It envisions an economy where individuals don’t merely survive, but prosper—empowering Black men with the resources needed to purchase homes, support families, launch businesses, and accumulate wealth.”
This initiative is intended to bolster Harris’s appeal to Black male voters during the critical final weeks of a tightly contested race against Republican ex-President Donald Trump.
The program announced would grant 1 million fully forgivable loans of up to $20,000 for Black entrepreneurs and others looking to start businesses. Funding for these loans will come from partnerships between mission-focused lenders, community banks, and the Small Business Administration, as per the campaign’s information.
The agenda further emphasizes training and mentorship initiatives to assist Black men in securing employment in high-demand fields, along with increased investment in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to attract and retain Black male teachers.
The PSLF program eliminates student loan debt after 10 years for borrowers engaged in specific non-profit and public sector roles. Notably, Black men represent less than 2% of U.S. public school teachers, according to the National Teacher and Principal Survey from the 2020-21 academic year.
A win in the upcoming November elections would make Harris the first Black woman and the first South Asian individual to be elected President of the United States.
Additionally, Harris pledged to advocate for federal marijuana legalization, taking a significant step beyond the current Biden administration’s approach towards cannabis, which includes pardoning individuals convicted of marijuana possession and assessing the potential reclassification of marijuana within the drug scheduling system.
According to a statement from the Harris campaign, she “will dismantle unfair legal obstacles that hinder Black men and other Americans by advocating for national marijuana legalization, collaborating with Congress to ensure safe cultivation, distribution, and possession of recreational marijuana becomes law.”
“Harris will also strive to guarantee that as the national cannabis industry develops, Black men—who have historically faced over-policing for marijuana use—can access wealth and employment opportunities in this emerging market,” added the campaign.
The new initiative also briefly mentions digital assets, highlighting a potential divergence from the Biden administration’s position.
The Harris campaign noted, “With over 20% of Black Americans owning or having owned cryptocurrency, her strategy will ensure that both owners and investors in digital assets are covered by a regulatory framework that protects their participation in this market.”
While the specifics of this regulatory framework remain unclear, a significant debate surrounding cryptocurrency regulation is actively ongoing in Washington.
Recent polls indicate that while Black voters largely favor Harris over Trump, by the end of the 2020 campaign, President Joe Biden was achieving a higher percentage of this crucial Democratic voter base than Harris is presently, just three weeks before Election Day, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll.
Pollsters observed that about 15% of likely Black voters mentioned their intention to support Trump in the upcoming election, marking a six-point increase from Biden’s final margin with Black voters during the 2020 election. These statistics highlight the ground that Harris is aiming to cover in the upcoming weeks.
Through her initiatives aimed at Black men, Harris seeks to distinctly contrast herself with Trump.
The vice president commonly associates the former president with the Project 2025 agenda, a compilation of stringent policy proposals devised by the conservative think tank, The Heritage Foundation, in collaboration with over 100 right-leaning organizations.
Though Trump has attempted to distance himself from Project 2025, which advocates for slashing funding for education and support programs like Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.
