Despite the 175,000 nonfarm jobs added to the economy in May, the black unemployment rate jumped from 13.3 percent to 13.5 percent following two months of decline, BET reports. The national unemployment rate increased from 7.5 percent to 7.6 percent.
Even more startling? Black Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 have an unemployment rate of 21 percent, almost triple the national average.Â
The BET article included comments from Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody's Analytics, which co-produced the report.
"The softer job market this spring is largely due to significant fiscal drag from tax increases and government spending cuts," he said.
Government spending cuts are impacting African-Americans in various ways, from jobs, including furloughs enforced due to the sequester, to safety-net and education programs. As a result, the Black unemployment rate continues to be nearly twice as high as the overall rate.
Read more at BET.