(WIB) – A crisis is happening on HBCU campuses. Black men account for only 26% of HBCU students, the lowest level in nearly 50 years. The South, where 89% of HBCUs are located, has the lowest Black male college enrollment rate at just 33%. At Howard University, only 19% of students are Black men. Nationwide, Black male enrollment has plummeted from 38% in 1976 to just 26% today.
These aren’t just numbers. They represent a generation of Black men being locked out of economic mobility. For Democrats, economic mobility, or the lack thereof that is felt by many working-class voters, has cost us votes and pushed winnable elections out of reach. A case in point would be the 2024 Presidential campaign, which saw Donald Trump secure 24% of the Black male vote. This number is even more concerning