Bloomberg Says Back In 2011, Young Black, Latino Men ‘Don’t Know How to Behave in the Workplace’

Democratic presidential hopeful Mike Bloomberg once claimed during a television appearance that an “enormous cohort” of young black and Latino males “don’t know how to behave in the workplace.”

Bloomberg, who at the time was in his final term as mayor of New York City, made the remarks at the launch of his multimillion dollar Young Men’s Initiative (YMI) in August 2011. The program, funded in part through a collaboration between the city of New York and George Soros, seeks to address the “disparities among black and Latino men between the ages of 16 and 24 in education, employment, health and justice.” As part of its launch, Bloomberg mounted a media campaign to stir up attention and enthusiasm.

One of the first stops of that campaign was an in-depth sit down with PBS News Hour. The televised interview, however, would prove to be problematic given Bloomberg’s use of language that can only be considered racially insensitive.

Bloomberg started off by saying:

For a long time people have said there is nothing you can do about [racial disparities]. Blacks and Latinos score terribly in school testing compared to whites and Asians. If you look at our jails, it’s predominantly minorities.

If you look at where crime takes place, it’s in minority neighborhoods… who the victims and the perpetrators are, it’s virtually all minorities.

Elderly Man Sues McDonald’s, Says Staff Failed to Act Before Wife Was Killed by Vagrant in Unprovoked Drive-Thru Attack

Tyler Robinson Seeks to Upend Case by Getting Prosecutors Disqualified

DOJ urges judge to reject lawmakers’ bid for special master in Epstein files dispute

Cancer-stricken children urge Bernie Sanders to back life-saving pediatric healthcare bill

Hunter Biden accused of ghosting daughter with Lunden Roberts and violating child support agreement

Colbert Reminds Us Why He Was Canceled, Smears ICE Agents as ‘Masked Goons’ Who Are ‘Victimizing’ Minnesota

Climate Alarmist Kamala Harris Buys Malibu Mansion Overlooking the Ocean She Recently Said Was Rising

ICE releases photos after violent Minneapolis protests leave multiple alleged agitators arrested

Reality TV star declares 2026 Austin mayoral run, learns live on TV election is in 2028

Fox News True Crime Newsletter: Virginia nanny’s story, dentist murders charges, Barry Morphew’s plea

Trump: It was ‘very nice’ of Machado to give me her Nobel Peace Prize

Libs Pounce on Trump’s ‘No Midterms’ Joke, but Forget They Seriously Called to End Midterms Under Obama

‘Worthless piece of crap’: GOP blasts DNC chief for equating Trump’s America with Iran’s repressive regime

Democrats claim shutdown victory after GOP defections revive Obamacare fight

WATCH: Hegseth Exhausts Japan’s Defense Minister with Intense Workout – US Medical Personnel to the Rescue

Bloomberg proceeded to argue that although great lengths had been taken to address the city’s crime problem, its root causes could not be addressed without expanding economic opportunities for young men of color. Which is where, according to Bloomberg, the YMI was to come into play.

The mayor said, elaborating on why he believed such individuals were unable to find work:

We’ve done a number of these kinds of things to try and attract the kind of jobs that are available to people, who maybe don’t have a formal education … or don’t have great command of the English language or have a blemish on their resume.

Nevertheless, there’s this enormous cohort of black and Latino males, age 16-to-25 that don’t have jobs, don’t have any prospects, don’t know how to find jobs … [and] don’t know how to behave in the workplace.

When pressed for an example of how YMI would improve the lives of young men of color, the mayor struggled to provide an answer. While admitting there were some jobs that would never go to individuals with a criminal record, Bloomberg suggested reconnecting at-risk youth with their fathers might be one solution to the disparity YMI was created to address.

“But there will be jobs if we can get these kids, get their families together, even if their fathers don’t live with their mothers or [have] never been married or maybe, even, they’re in jail,” the mayor said.

“Lot of statistics show that if the father is engaged it gives the kid some understanding that he’s heading down the wrong path,” he added, before suggesting mentors could serve the same function.