Chicago City Wire

Steve Cortes, Founder of the League of American Workers, announced on X that his new documentary will explore claims regarding economic hardships faced by Black Americans during the Obama presidency.

"You Don't Know Barack: Exposing Obama," said Cortes. "My newest documentary. Under Obama, black Americans got economically crushed. Coming Sunday, here and at http://CortesInvestigates.com."

According to the Economic Policy Institute, Black Americans experienced both setbacks and some gains during the Obama administration. The Great Recession led to high unemployment and poverty rates early in Obama's tenure, but subsequent recovery efforts resulted in job growth and educational improvements. Despite these gains, significant disparities in wealth and income compared to other groups persisted throughout Obama's presidency.

Steve Cortes, Founder for League of American Workers | X

“There was the letdown," said Marquita Hanus, a former supporter of Obama from Chicago, according to Cortes' documentary. "The letdown of not only was he not a president who had the opportunity and position to bring healing—I found that what he did was he drove us in the opposite direction. It was more tribalism than I had ever experienced in my entire life.”

According to the Federal Reserve, Black household wealth remained significantly lower than White household wealth from 2008 to 2016. The median wealth for Black families reached just $17,600 in 2016. Wealth gains were slow, and Black Americans continued to face barriers in savings, homeownership, and overall economic mobility during this period.

Cortes is also President of the League of American Workers and serves as a senior political advisor to CatholicVote. He previously worked as a senior advisor to President Trump and JD Vance and has been a commentator for Fox News and CNN. Cortes regularly releases documentaries and columns at cortesinvestigates.com.