By Jarrett Renshaw, Nandita Bose
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, concerned about slipping support from Black voters, unveiled new policy proposals aimed at Black men on Monday that include forgivable small business loans and access to a new legal recreational marijuana industry.
The Harris campaign and Democrats - including former President Barack Obama - have expressed deep concern about whether Black men will turn out on Nov. 5 in numbers seen in past elections and whether they will support Harris or her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump.
The new slate of policy proposals is part of an effort pushed by Harris to make a direct pitch at Black men and make them a more central part of her campaign during the final stretch. Reuters was first to report the plan.
The new policies include 1 million loans that are fully forgivable of up to $20,000 to entrepreneurs in underserved communities, and a promise to legalize recreational marijuana and help ensure Black entrepreneurs have access to the new industry.
A number of advocacy groups have called for reducing criminal penalties for drug use, while pushing equal access to the growing legal marijuana business as a way of restoring communities disproportionately targeted by law enforcement. But some in predominantly Black communities have said they do not want the businesses in their communities.
Other Harris proposals include boosting access to the cryptocurrency industry for Black Americans and launching a national health equity initiative focused on Black men that addresses diseases like sickle cell anemia which disproportionately affects the community.
While the plans are intended to cater to the Black community, Harris is seeking to emphasize how her economic proposals benefit all men.
Harris is traveling to Erie County, Pennsylvania, on Monday for a campaign rally, along with a stop at a local Black-owned small business.
A statement from the campaign announcing the plan said Harris "knows that Black men have long felt that too often their voice in our political process has gone unheard and that there is so much untapped ambition and leadership within the Black male community."
If elected, Harris would be the second Black president and first Black woman in the office. Some Democrats view the vice president's relatively soft support from Black men as a significant concern in the election.
Over a quarter of young Black men say they would support Trump in the election race, according to a September poll by the NAACP, the nation's largest civil rights organization. President Joe Biden got about 80% of the Black male vote in 2020.
The policy rollout comes a day before Harris is expected to be interviewed by Charlamagne tha God, a comedian and author whose nationally syndicated radio show is popular with Black millennials. He is also an influential critic of the Biden administration.