Congressional Black Caucus

Floor Speech

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Mr. PAYNE. Madam Speaker, let me first thank the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick) for allowing me the opportunity to speak today and also the gentleman from Illinois, her great partner, the Honorable Jonathan Jackson, who comes from a lineage of great service to this Nation.

I am here tonight because of the topic. I was once a Black little boy, and so the topic is very important to me because, you see, in this Nation, Madam Speaker, it seems that there is a race going on. It appears that sometimes the young men in my community don't receive the same consideration, the same opportunities, the same benefit of the doubt that other young men are allowed to have. So, I am here to talk a bit about that.

The young lady that has brought us here today, the honorable gentlewoman from Florida, Frederica Wilson, has been a consummate advocate for Black men and young boys. I thank my good friend, Congresswoman Frederica Wilson, for tonight.

She is a strong supporter of efforts to improve the health of Black males. She created and now serves as chairwoman of the House caucus on the Commission on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys. She founded this caucus to uncover these social disparities that affect Black men's health in our country, and the caucus does exceptional work to address these issues that lower the life expectancy of Black men, such as gun violence, mental illness, and the lack of access to quality healthcare. In fact, Congresswoman Wilson has done more to improve Black men's health than most Black men.

That is why I am honored to be here today to support her. The health of Black males is particularly important to me for two reasons.

As a Black Congressman, I want to do everything I can to improve the health and well-being of Black men. I am the co-chair of three different congressional caucuses that deal with healthcare: the Congressional Men's Health Caucus, the Congressional Colorectal Cancer Caucus, and the Congressional Peripheral Artery Disease Caucus.

I understand the disparities in healthcare that exist for Black men and all Black Americans. Studies show that Black Americans do not get the same healthcare, on average, as our counterparts in this country, and that causes too many members of our community to die from preventable diseases.

Today, Black men born after 1960 have a life expectancy of 61. To quote Congresswoman Wilson: ``They do not even live long enough to collect their Social Security.''

The second and most important reason is that I am diabetic, and I have to monitor my health on a daily basis. Unfortunately, too many Black men do not monitor their health on a consistent basis, and that is one reason the life expectancy of Black men is so low.

They fail to get regular checkups and health screenings. They wait to see a doctor until they have a reason, and that can allow a minor health issue to become a major one.

I could go on about this issue because it means so much to me as a Black man, but I would love to give my colleagues here the opportunity to express their concern about this very important issue.

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