Hill Diversity
Joint Center Urges Congress to Prioritize Racial Diversity in Top Staff
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nov. 13, 2024
CONTACT:
Kennedy Fortner, kennedy.fortner@jointcenter.org
Joint Center Urges Congress to Prioritize Racial Diversity in Top Staff
The campaign will track and identify every member of the 119th Congress’s top staff hires over the next few months, specifically pointing out if their top hires’ diversity falls short of their constituencies’ racial makeup. As part of the campaign, the Joint Center will send letters signed by nearly 70 national organizations and diversity stakeholders to new and returning members of Congress to advocate for increasing diversity among top and mid-level congressional staffers.
The initiative also includes an updated microsite with real-time data on the makeup of congressional top staff and clear directives for solving the lack of representation. The Joint Center also released an explainer video on why Hill top staff needs more diversity, and will later share podcast ads on Punchbowl’s “The Daily Punch” and a video featuring social media influencer Daria Rose.
In a deeply divided country, policies that reflect the experiences and needs of all communities are essential to building trust and achieving progress. People of color remain largely underrepresented in mid and top-level staff positions in congressional offices. Although people of color make up 41.1 percent of the U.S. population, they make up only 18 percent of the U.S. House top staff and 15.8 percent of the Senate top staff. While the Joint Center’s recent Senate and House reports demonstrate some improvements in diversity among top staff positions over time, diversity in these roles still pales when compared with the diversity of the U.S. population. The Joint Center’s campaign aims to improve the percentage of top staff of color and increase awareness about the importance of diversity among top staff. Diverse top staff bring various perspectives, constituent relationships, lived experiences, and cultural competencies that help lawmakers craft more inclusive and effective policies that address the complex needs of a diverse nation.
Top staffers have significant influence in decisions that affect our nation, including developing legislation, providing oversight of hundreds of administrative agencies that employ over four million civilian and military workers, and overseeing a multi-trillion-dollar budget and appropriations process.
“Despite changing demographics in voting patterns and historic wins for diverse candidates in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate, some members of Congress may feel less pressure to prioritize diverse hiring, especially in top staff positions,” said Dr. LaShonda Brenson, senior researcher who leads the Joint Center’s Hill Diversity work. “But to ensure Americans across race and ethnicity continue to have their voices heard, all members of Congress must prioritize diversity in top staff hires based on their own values, constituent demands, or organizational commitments.”
“The needs of the American people must remain at the forefront of the 119th Congress’s agenda. Ensuring top and pathway staff represent America’s diversity is a critical first step to creating policies that truly address those needs. Despite frequent attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion, it is more important than ever for Congress to stand steadfast in serving all its constituents,” said Kimberly Victor, Joint Center Hill Diversity research associate.
“Now, more than ever, is the time for national organizations and constituent groups to push for diverse staff, standing against racial inequality is always the appropriate stand regardless of the back and forth of electoral politics,” said Dedrick Asante-Muhammad, Joint Center president. “The Joint Center urges newly elected and returning members of Congress to adopt robust diversity plans and collaborate with congressional institutions, like the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, to drive these efforts. They should also work with the tri-caucus staff associations to tap into their database of diverse talent and engage the tri-caucus nonprofit organizations, which offer resources for supporting pathway staff.”
For more information about the Joint Center’s initiative to increase congressional staff diversity, click here.
The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, America’s Black think tank, provides compelling and actionable policy solutions to eradicate persistent and evolving barriers to the full freedom of Black people in America. We are the trusted forum for leading experts and scholars to participate in major public policy debates and promote ideas that advance Black communities. We use evidence-based research, analysis, convenings, and strategic communications to support Black communities and a network of allies.
