Biden faces increasing pressure to diversify his practice

Biden, however, nominated white candidates for two of the Cabinet’s most prestigious positions: Secretary of State and Secretary of the Treasury. Black and Latino leaders fear people of color will be appointed primarily to second-level positions in Biden’s administration and urge Biden to choose various candidates to fill the remaining high-level positions, saying this would give sub-groups. represented a voice in the leadership of the country. Their demands come as the nation rebels over police killings of blacks, massive protests calling for racial equality this year, and President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration policies.

Leaders of seven black-led civil rights groups said they had called for a meeting to discuss the need to recruit more black candidates to Biden’s cabinet.

Reverend Al Sharpton, who heads the National Action Network, said Biden had not yet agreed on a date for the meeting. He would like to see black leaders in positions such as the United States attorney general, secretary of education, and secretary of labor.

“We are in an era of heightened alert in the areas of race and criminal justice,” Sharpton told CNN. “And anything that doesn’t recognize that means that people who voted for him, thinking he would take care of this issue, will feel a sense of betrayal.”

The effort, which is focused on increasing representation at the highest level of government, is also aimed at keeping some potential Cabinet choices out of the Biden administration.

Congress pressure

As pressure mounts from outside groups like the National Urban League and the NAACP to have Biden meet with them and discuss the future of his cabinet, members of the Congressional Black Caucus are also calling for more transparency in the Biden’s team on their plans for future appointments.

New Jersey Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, told CNN that while there have been preliminary conversations with Biden’s team about her first 100 days and hiring, she has need to see more black men and women selected at the highest level. positions.

Stressing that she was not speaking for the black caucus and was only expressing her own opinion, Coleman said she had been “disappointed” so far by the number of black women who have been selected for the positions. the most importants.

Biden chose Rouse to lead her Council of Economic Advisers and Thomas-Greenfield to be the next U.S. ambassador to the UN, both black, but Coleman says she hopes there will be more.

“I’m disappointed that I haven’t seen enough black women or black men. I agree that there are a lot more positions to advertise,” she said.

On the night Biden gave his acceptance speech, he acknowledged that the black community had been the cornerstone of his electoral success in both the primary and general election by saying, “The African American community has once again stood up for my defense. You’ve always had my back, and I’ll have yours. ”

Coleman said that night he was left with the line and it meant something now.

“The black community has high expectations which not only include appointing a whole bunch of people to random positions, but that means we are at the table when the important conversations take place, when policies and priorities are determined.” , she said. .

Her comments also come after South Carolina representative Jim Clyburn, a member of the Democratic leadership, lobbied for Ohio Representative Marcia Fudge to take the top spot in the Agriculture Department. Clyburn said Biden’s team must continue to appoint more black men and women to the top positions.

Clyburn said Wednesday night he was watching Biden continue to make cabinet choices, with a diversity of eyes, and said: “I can think of at least 10 blacks who qualify for each,” among cabinet positions .

In addition to the three cabinet-level positions that could be filled by people of color pending confirmation by the Senate, Biden also announced a number of historic firsts in other positions in his administration. Wally Adeyemo would be the first black person to serve as assistant secretary to the treasury, for example, and Rouse is the first black person to be appointed president of the Council of Economic Advisers.

“President-elect Biden will build a diverse administration that resembles America, starting with the first woman of South Asian descent and the first black woman to serve as vice president-elect,” the spokesperson said. of the Cameron French transition in a statement to CNN. “His campaign and his transition have been successful in both this effort. He has announced several historic and diverse White House appointments and cabinet nominees at this point, and his success in finding diverse voices to develop and implement his political vision to tackle our country’s most difficult challenges will be clear. when our full list of appointees and candidates is complete. ”

Outside groups are looking for meetings with transition

Johnson of the NAACP told CNN on Wednesday that his organization and other civil rights groups had requested time with Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to discuss the new administration and ensure representation of minorities and civil rights in the Biden government’s agenda.

They have yet to receive a response from the transition team, Johnson said.

A Biden transition official told CNN they are engaged with the NAACP LDF and the National Urban League.

“This is to ensure that there is a civil rights agenda built into the administration’s decision,” Johnson said. “There have been several meetings with other constituency groups. There has not been a meeting with the civil rights community. We want to meet so that we can provide the necessary feedback and input so that they can succeed. ”

“We don’t want the clock to run out before there’s a discussion or all decisions are made,” Johnson said.

Janet Murguía, President and CEO of UnidosUS, asks for at least five Latin American secretaries in the cabinet and 800 – or 20% – of the 4,000 administrative positions to be filled by qualified Latinos.

“Such a Latin American representation would not only reflect the reality of the United States, where Hispanics make up 18% of the population and constitute the largest bloc of ethnic minorities, but would also pay tribute to the contributions Latinos have made to our country. throughout its history, ”Murguía said. “Everyone benefits when everyone has the opportunity to contribute.” ‘

Sharpton told CNN that one of Biden’s most important choices to show he’s serious about defending the black community will come when he picks his attorney general.

“So far, it’s aesthetically good,” Sharpton said of Biden’s choices overall. “But I am concerned that justice, labor, education and agriculture are still open … He did not engage in conversations with many of us that he had said he would. ”

Sharpton argued that the important thing is that black leaders and leaders in Congress speak out now.

“We don’t want to wait for the other shoes to fall off to say ‘hold on. We are concerned about this. “We wanted to move forward because already the top tier he gave isn’t as diverse as some of the other appointments. Other appointments are good, but they’re not top tier,” said Sharpton. “We don’t want to be invited to the party after all the food has been eaten.”

Sharpton called Biden’s choice for attorney general “a critical point of reference for how Biden’s cabinet will be viewed.”

He argued that Tony West, the former associate attorney general under the Obama administration, or Deval Patrick, a civil rights lawyer and former governor of Massachusetts, might be good choices.

He also named Senator Doug Jones, a former US lawyer from Alabama who had pursued civil rights cases.

“I’m not saying they have to be black, but they should be the kind of American who understands systematic racism,” Sharpton said.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated how many people of color Biden had appointed to his cabinet. He named four.