African American community weighs in on success under Trump
WASHINGTON (SBG) - Hillman’s Barber shop has been a staple in Washington D.C. since the 1940’s. It’s less than three miles from the white house, but for many it feels worlds away.
“My success depends on me it doesn’t matter who the president is. I didn’t really see anything that Barack Obama did, we have to do it for ourselves,” said Larry green, a Hillman’s customer.
Hi barber said, “the economy is going to fluctuate either way, with or without Trump”
Trump was part of the conversation here after Thursday’s oval office meeting with musician Kanye West.
It turns out the numbers under Trump have been good for the African America community -a steady decrease in the unemployment rate, most recently falling to 6%.
But that’s still much higher than the overall unemployment rate at 3.7% and only tells part of the story, said Dr. Nicol Turner-Lee, a fellow with the Brookings Institution, in an interview Friday.
“People are working more and making less that doesn't say much about the quality of life particularly when you have an administration chipping away at childcare protection and workplace protections,” she said.
Some residents who live in the Northeast Washington neighborhood where Hillman’s is based said they’re having trouble getting even getting their basic needs met, from food to housing to healthcare.
Back inside the barber shop, many say they’d be all for the President tackling issues brought up in Thursday’s meeting like Criminal Justice reform or bringing better jobs to their community, but for now they haven’t noticed much of a change in their lives since Donald Trump moved in down the street
