34.5% of young Black men are unemployed.

Reported in October, unemployment for African-American men between the ages of 16 and 24 has skyrocketed.  The percent is more than three times the unemployment rate for the entire U.S. population.

This month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that unemployment for Blacks in D.C had risen from 11.4% to 11.9%, although employment was stable for other races located in Maryland and Virginia.

As the country deals with a recession, Black America is slowly crumbling into an economic depression with jobs becoming scarcer, especially for the Black community.  The hole is becoming deeper and deeper and the light for opportunity only flickers.

Issues trying to find stability in the work force for a Black man spans farther back in history than most can remember.  Some have been placed in situations where they feel they are in dead end jobs and are the last to be hired, but the first to be fired.

In regards to the present, the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that African-Americans had a higher rate of job loss in the fourth quarter of 2008 when compared to whites, Hispanics or any other ethnic group in America.

Back in March 2009, the unemployment rate for Black men was reported at 15.4% and was almost double to jobless white men.

A study was conducted by Princeton University of 1,500 employers within New York City and the results found that Black applicants that did not have criminal backgrounds did not have more of a chance at getting a job than white applicants that were fresh out of the prison system.

Discrimination has clearly played out to be the dominant factor in the downturn when compared to things such as age, income and education.  The Center of Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University reported that lower-income white teens are more likely to obtain employment than upper-income Black teens.

As the road remains tumultuous, the true nature of the country begins to rear its ugly head.  Even with so much time passed and so much accomplished within its history, America is still unable to unlock its grasp on race.

Keep in mind that with drastic times comes drastic measures, so as a person is unable to alleviate their back from being against the wall, he/she is prone to explore other means in order to get what they want when the legal, civilized way isn't working.

While African Americans have suffered greatly and 15.1 percent unemployment in
the month of August, up from 14.5 in July.

At a job fair in New York's Madison Square Garden, a large number of black men of all ages were in attendance in efforts to gain employment.

"It's humbling," said Brendan Allen an entrepreneur , who was supporting himself "maneuvering stocks" until recently.

Joseph Thompson stood outside of Madison Square Garden six hours before the fair opened.

"It's been painful to go through this instability," said Thompson, who is seeking a general accountant position. "But it's a blessing in a disguise because it's allowing me to market myself and further my skill sets while I look for work."

Some job-seeker were overwhelmed by the masses of people applying for the same jobs.

"I feel like I'm just a needle in a haystack," said Edward Amo-krah of Jersey City, N.J. "When I saw the hundreds and hundreds of people outside waiting in line, it really gets to your spirit."

Amo-krah lost his position as an internal auditor at AIG in 2007. He is know looking to pursue a a teaching career.

"I feel that teaching is just more rewarding," Amo-krah said. "I've been substituting for about a while now, and I'm thinking this is my next thing."

According to CNN, while unemployment in the city spiked to 72 percent from the first quarter of 2008 to the first quarter of 2009, it surged to more than 160 percent in the black communities specifically. The unemployment rate increased 14.7 percent, rising four times the speed than any other ethnic group.

National figures, however, did not show such a crippling difference.

Comptroller William C. Thompson said the imbalance is cause by the astronomical number of blacks in the retail and service industries, which have been seen the worst of times resulting from