Black Women's Agenda Supports President's Proposal For Avoiding The "Fiscal Cliff"

WASHINGTON, Dec. 3, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- At a roundtable meeting held recently in the West Wing of the White House, The Black Women's Agenda (BWA) Inc. led 15 of its 18 National Collaborating Organizations in announcing support for President Obama's efforts to reach a deal with Congress that would avoid the "fiscal cliff" – tax increases and deep spending cuts that would go into effect on January 1, 2013.  In the presence of Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President, and Tina Tchen, Executive Director of the White House Council on Women and Girls, BWA lauded the President's commitment to working with the leadership of both houses of Congress, and urged him to eliminate tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and maintain the current tax rate for the middle class and senior citizens.

The fiscal cliff is the result of Congress and the White House's inability to reach an agreement on expiring tax cuts and reducing the national debt. With no break in the impasse, the terms of the Budget Control Act of 2011 require automatic cuts in defense and "across-the-board" spending, and an increase in taxes for virtually every American family.

As an organization dedicated to securing, advancing and protecting the rights and well-being of Black women and their families, BWA is encouraging its constituency to back President Obama's plan to extend tax cuts for 98% of Americans and 97% of small businesses; eliminate tax cuts for those individuals in the high-income bracket, and cut spending – steps that collectively could result in more than $4 trillion in balanced deficit reduction.¹  "The Black Women's Agenda recognizes the importance of reducing our nation's deficit, but we also know that increasing taxes on the middle class and seniors and cutting programs that they rely on is not the way to economic recovery," said BWA President Gwainevere Catchings Hess. "We believe that the President's proposal best serves the interests of not just the constituencies that we and our collaborating organizations represent, but also the majority of the American people." Among the BWA collaborating organizations that pledged support for the president's proposal are: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.; Auxiliary to the National Medical Association, Inc.; Chi Eta Phi Sorority, Inc.; Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.; Iota Phi Lambda Sorority, Inc.; Jack & Jill of America, Inc.; Lambda Kappa Mu Sorority, Inc.; Mocha Moms, Inc.; National Association of Colored Women's Clubs, Inc.; National Association of Negro Business & Professional Women's Clubs, Inc.; National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc.; National Sorority of Phi Delta Kappa, Inc.; Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.; The Girl Friends, Inc.; The Links, Inc.; Top Ladies of Distinction, Inc.; Women's Missionary Society of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.

Founded in 1977 in Washington, DC, the Black Women's Agenda is a national non-profit organization that generates awareness and support for issues affecting Black women worldwide. Through the development of a social priorities agenda, it facilitates discussions that promote effective policies and meaningful change. For more information on the Black Women's Agenda, please visit www.bwa-inc.org. 

¹ http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/taxes/tax-cuts

SOURCE Black Women's Agenda