The Black Papers A Policy Agenda for Black Liberation in the 21st Century

Introduction to the Black Papers: A Love Letter to Our Community
David J. Johns

1. Foundational People Power: Embracing the Challenge to Reclaim Democracy
James Peterson
2. Architects of Democracy: Reclaiming Voting Rights and Reimagining America
LaTosha Brown

Section II: Economic Justice

3. Solidarity in Action: How Black Workers and Unions Are Building Economic Justice
Fred Redmond
4. Building an Economy That Works for Us: The Black Economic Vision
Jessica Fulton, Jeffery T. D. Wallace, Jr., Alphonso David, Lawrence “Larry” Parks, and Tim Simons
5. The Power of Ownership: How Black Entrepreneurship Builds Economic Freedom and Community Wealth
Natalie Madeira Cofield, Arian Simone, and Alphonso David

Section III: Education

6. Start With Us: How Early Care and Education Shapes Democracy
Lee Johnson III, David J. Johns, Cemeré James, Iheoma Iruka, and Lauren Christine Mims
7. Beyond Protest, Toward Power: K-12 Education and Thriving Black Students in America
David J. Johns, Sharif El-Mekki, Monique S. Toussaint, Lauren Christine Mims, Yaribel Mercedes, Brianna Baker, and Christina Grant
8. Higher Learning: The Black Learner in Higher Education-Pathways, Challenges, and Opportunities (Higher Learning Black Paper Part I)
David J. Johns, Ivory A. Toldson, Nancy Hanks, Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, James Peterson, Yaribel Mercedes, Leilah Naila Jones, and Corena D. Wiggins
9. Institutional Contexts for Black Learners: The Role of HBCUs, Community Colleges, and Digital Education (Higher Learning Black Paper Part II)
David J. Johns, Ivory A. Toldson, Wes Bellamy, Nancy Hanks, Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, James Peterson, Yaribel Mercedes, and Corena D. Wiggins

Section IV: Health and Well-Being

10. 12 Years Lost: Confronting America's Black Health Equity Crisis
Britt Weinstock, Linda Elam, and David J. Johns
11. Reproductive Justice at the Crossroads: Black Communities Navigating Care Deserts in Post-Roe America
The National Women’s Law Center
12. Protecting Black Mothers: Ending Disparities in Maternal Health
Ashley Brevil

Section V: Identity and Liberation

13. Gender Equity: A Black Paper
Brittney Cooper, Shatema Threadcraft, Susana Morris, and Melanye Price
14. Disability Justice and Equity in the Black Community: An Intersectional Approach
David J. Johns, Andraéa LaVant, Dara Baldwin, Vilissa Thompson, Andre’ White, and Nieta M. Greene  
15. Black Immigration Policies, Black Lives: A Call to Action
Nana Gyamfi, Ronald Claude, Metzlal Ocbazghi, and Erica Baganza

Section VI: Infrastructure and Environment

16. Green Dreams Deferred: Environmental Justice in Black America
LaTricea D. Adams
17. Rooted Resilience: Black Land Stewardship in the Face of Climate Crisis
Bunny McKensie Mack and Brea Baker
18. Housing As a Human Right
Marcia L. Fudge, Imani D. Edwards, David J. Johns, Jonathan M. Cox, and Jasmine Esquilin
19. Pathways To Mobility: Transportation Infrastructure and Policy in the United States
David J. Johns
20. Digital Equity is a Civil Right
Nicol Turner Lee, Alisa Valentin, David J. Johns, Ebonie C. Riley, Dee C. Marshall, Courtney R. Snowden, Chris Lewis, DeShuna Elisa Spencer, and A. Prince Albert III
21. Securing Black America: A Revolutionary Framework for True National Security
Nicole Tisdale

Section VII: Public Safety and Justice

22. Policing in America: Reimagining Public Safety in Black Communities
Brittany Packnett-Cunningham
23. Unshackling Our People: Ending Mass Incarceration Through Community Power and Policy Transformation
Caitlin Radigan, Kirsten F. Wilder, Jada Capri Ward, Jasmine Esquilin, Roshana Agarrat, Kelcey P. Morrow, and Nadia French-Graham
24. How We Keep Us Safe: A Guide on Gun Safety for Black Communities
Joshua Miller

Section VIII: Reparations and Repair

25. From Capitol to Commonwealth: The Historical Imperative and Contemporary Case for Washington, D.C. Statehood
Mark A. Thompson
26. Reparations: Healing Our People’s Hearts and Our Nation’s Soul
Marcus Anthony Hunter, Dreisen Heath, and David J. Johns

Conclusion

Biography

Dr. David J. Johns is an education policy expert and advocate for Black and LGBTQ+ youth. Former Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans, he now leads the National Black Justice Collective a civil rights organization, advancing equity through research, advocacy, and intersectional leadership.

“The Black Papers are an essential guide to renewing the spirit of resistance, survival, and power-building that have brought us thus far on our way. It is the work of a new generation of Black thinkers, workers, and warriors.”
Joy-Ann (Joy) Reid, Host of the Joy Reid Show

“The NAACP has always known resistance alone is not enough. In this moment, resistance must be reimagined—not just as opposition to injustice, but as the construction of justice itself. The Black Papers embody that shift. Across 26 chapters, it delivers legislative frameworks, budget blueprints, and organizing strategies that move us from protest to policy—and from resistance to liberation.”
Derrick Johnson, President and CEO, NAACP

“Intersectionality is a lens through which you can see where power collides and interlocks. The Black Papers extends that lens to every dimension of Black life: democracy, education, health, justice, and economics. But the chapters don’t just diagnose structural racism; they map comprehensive pathways to dismantle it. This volume shows what happens when scholars, organizers and policymakers refuse to accept single-axis solutions, and it is essential for anyone serious about liberation.”
Dr. Kimberlé Crenshaw, Executive Director, African American Policy Forum; Isidor and Seville Sulzbacher Professor of Law, Columbia; Distinguished Professor and Promise Institute Chair on Human Rights, UCLA

“After George Floyd and Breonna Taylor were murdered, I said we're in a state of emergency. My book State of Emergency explained how we got here. The Black Papers map how we get free, 26 chapters of actionable policy across democracy, justice, health, education, and economic empowerment. This is the comprehensive roadmap for the transformation we're demanding.”
Tamika D. Mallory, Co-Founder, Until Freedom; Youngest Executive Director, National Action Network; Author, State of Emergency and I Lived to Tell the Story

“In a political moment when Black communities need more than hashtags and hot takes, The Black Papers delivers what we've been missing: comprehensive policy frameworks rooted in our lived experiences and ready for implementation. From democracy to education to justice, this volume doesn't just diagnose our crises—it hands us the blueprints for building something better. This is the policy handbook the movement needs—and our people built it from the ground up.”

Brittany Packnett Cunningham, Activist, Educator, Host of UNDISTRACTED

“2025 brought an insurmountable surge of attacks on LGBTQ people—from the tireless recycling of anti-LGBTQ and especially anti-trans legislation, to social media companies retreating from trust & safety to appease right-wing activists. As our movement pushes for visibility and accountability across the media landscape on the daily, we also need comprehensive policy infrastructure. The Black Papers provide exactly that—rigorous frameworks that don't compromise on what liberation requires. From voting rights to media justice to LGBTQ+ policy, this volume meets the moment.”
Sarah Kate Ellis, President of GLAAD

“For 50 years, the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation has built intergenerational civic engagement infrastructure in Black communities. For 30 years, I've led that work. The Black Papers provides the policy infrastructure our civic power demands—comprehensive frameworks across voting rights, economic justice, health equity, education, and more. Black Women's Roundtable's priorities are centered throughout. This is a timely policy roadmap that meets the moment that calls for vision and transformational change.”

Melanie L. Campbell, President & CEO, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation; Convener, Black Women's Roundtable, Founder, NCBCP Thomas W. Dortch Jr. Institute anchored at Clark Atlanta University

“The Task Force's tagline is 'Be You'—but being yourself requires policy protection. The Black Papers, Volume I provides a blueprint to that protection across LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive justice, voting rights, healthcare, and economic security. The last 25 years of my career have proven to me that in addition to building resilience and agile organizing, we need comprehensive policy infrastructure that doesn't ask us to choose which identity to fight for.”
Kierra Johnson, President, task force, 2025 OUT 100 honoree, pansexual Black woman, Southern Queer Mom of 3

“As a child of immigrants, a Black man, and a gay man, I know firsthand that intersectional organizing isn’t optional - it’s essential. The Black Papers offers the comprehensive policy framework we need to protect, expand, and sustain our communities. From voting rights to immigration to health justice to LGBTQ+ liberation, this volume centers the realities our movement lives every day. Proud to stand with this work.”
Kenya Hutton, MPH, President & CEO, Center for Black Equity

“The Black Papers offers a timely contribution to the contemporary policy implications impacting the lives of Black Americans (and other Americans more broadly). As a collection of essays and policy proposals from leading and emerging scholars who are aiming to impact policymakers, the book will be a stand-out in the policy agenda arena. Unlike any other text, the nature of the policy agenda’s creation alongside policymakers, academics, and community organizers together make the contribution of this book emblematic not only as a model of policy but also as method.”
Terrell Winder, author of Shameless: The Making of Black Gay Identities in LA

“This book offers a rigorous, critical, timely, and useful tool to readers seeking to turn research into actionable outcomes with specific and concrete policy recommendations, which really is the strength of the volume, and why it makes an important contribution at this present moment in US history.”
Jason Sexton, Lecturer in Sociology, University of California, Los Angeles