Tri-Caucus Staff Associations Statement on 2020 Senate Democratic Diversity Initiative Survey
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 8, 2020
Celia Olivas (CHSA): 209-981-9141, [email protected]
Cody Sibulo (CAPASA): 819-397-8249, [email protected]
Maya Valentine (CBA): 202-907-6434, [email protected]
Patrice Smith (SBLSC): 203-940-3831, [email protected]
Washington, D.C. — Today, the Congressional Asian Pacific American Staff Association (CAPASA), the Congressional Black Associates (CBA), the Congressional Hispanic Staff Association (CHSA), and the Senate Black Legislative Staff Caucus (SBLSC) released the following statement on the Senate Democratic Diversity Initiative Survey:
“The Tri-Caucus Staff Associations commend Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democratic Diversity Initiative for continuing to collect and publish demographic data for Democratic Senate offices. This information is critical to understanding current disparities in Senate offices and finding solutions to correct them. The survey makes clear that while some offices have made progress, there continues to be a lack of diverse staff in Senate leadership offices, senior staff positions, and committees. It is particularly concerning that the number of chiefs of staff and communications directors of color has declined since last year. Furthermore, far too many personal offices and committees still have no AANHPI, Black, or Latinx staffers.
“While Senate Democratic offices have made some headway in hiring more diverse staff, it is clear that more work needs to be done. Democratic and Republican offices in both chambers, including leadership and committee offices, must make recruiting, retaining, and advancing diverse staff a priority. We continue to urge leadership to implement initiatives to help offices improve their hiring practices and retain senior and junior staff of color. We also maintain our call to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to conduct a similar demographic survey of all Republican offices.
“Finally, we renew our request for future demographic reports to disaggregate data by position and clearly distinguish between state and DC staff. The Tri-Caucus Staff Associations remain committed to working with Republican and Democratic leadership, personal, and committee offices to diversify their workforces.”
###