State of Black America
Our seminal pulse check on the state of progress in Black America
State of Black America
The State of Black America® is the signature annual reporting of the National Urban League. Since its first appearance in 1976 under the stewardship of the late Mr. Vernon E. Jordan Jr., the organization’s fifth president, the State of Black America® remains one of the most highly-anticipated benchmarks and sources for thought leadership around racial equality in America across economics, employment, education, health, housing, criminal justice and civic participation.
Each edition contains penetrating commentary and insightful analysis from recognized authorities and leading figures in politics, the corporate and tech sectors, the nonprofit arena, academia and popular culture.
The 2025 Report
In the 49th edition of the State of Black America, we issue a clear and urgent warning: Our democracy, civil rights, and hard-won progress are under attack.
This year, we reflect not only on a pivotal law, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but on the broader threats to justice, equity, and freedom unfolding before our eyes.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965, passed just one year after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, was a generational breakthrough. It ended poll taxes, literacy tests, and intimidation tactics designed to keep Black Americans from the ballot box. It created the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice as a watchdog to protect the foundational rights of American democracy, including voting rights, equal employment, and fair housing.
Sixty years later, those rights are under siege.
We face a Supreme Court that has dismantled affirmative action, threatening access to higher education and the economic mobility it enables. State governments across the country are erecting new barriers to the ballot box, restricting early voting, purging voter rolls, and enforcing ID laws that disproportionately impact marginalized communities.
In Washington, extremist lawmakers continue to use critical spending bills as leverage to gut programs that serve as lifelines for working families, from education to healthcare to food assistance. Executive orders have stripped equity requirements from federal agencies, silencing efforts to close racial gaps in opportunity.
This report does not simply document these threats. It highlights the growing resistance. Across courtrooms, classrooms, boardrooms, and statehouses, a new generation of leaders is rising to defend our rights and reimagine an inclusive future.
Our contributors—elected officials, scholars, civil rights leaders, and cultural influencers—reflect on the legacy of the Voting Rights Act and share powerful strategies to safeguard democracy for the 21st century. They examine how civil rights laws have shaped today’s America, how they’re being undermined, and what it will take to protect and expand them moving forward.
This is not the time to be silent. We cannot stand by as the rights our ancestors fought for are eroded by those who fear progress. The fight ahead is about our future, our legacy, and the soul of this nation.
Join us in it today.
Visit the State of Black America website to access the full 2025 report, including contributor essays, exclusive data, expert analysis, and a downloadable version of this executive summary.