On March 14, 2017, National Urban League President and CEO Marc H. Morial congratulated Raphael Bostic for being selected as the President of the Atlanta Federal Reserve, making him the first African-American and person of color to assume this important role.
“In the Federal Reserve’s 100-year history, an African-American has never served as president until now,” said Morial. “After years of personally advocating for greater diversity in the Federal Reserve System, I am pleased to see that some progress, although not enough, is being made. The National Urban League congratulates Raphael Bostic, one of this nation’s preeminent economic scholars, on this historic achievement. We look forward to continuing our work to ensure qualified women and people of color, like Bostic, have equal opportunities throughout the Federal Reserve System.”
As president of the Atlanta Federal Reserve, Bostic will lead 1,700 regional employees and represent the institution before its core constituencies, including member banks, business leaders, community organizations, consumers and the broader public. In addition, he will sit on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) that helps determine many important monetary policy issues, such as whether to increase interest rates.
The National Urban League has long fought to diversify the Federal Reserve System. In 2014, the National Urban League submitted public comments related to the implementation of Section 342 of Dodd-Frank, which created the Offices of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWIs). The OMWIs were established to increase diversity and inclusion in the financial services industry, including the Federal Reserve, which has a poor track record for hiring and contracting with women and people of color.
In 2016, Morial along with a group of economists met with Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and three Federal Reserve Board Governors to specifically discuss the importance of diversity. Mr. Morial also recently met with a Governor at the Federal Reserve Board to discuss the vacancy in Atlanta and to encourage diversity in their hiring process.
