Tonight is an historic occasion as the nation’s first African American President will deliver his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress and the American people.  In response, the editorial team at Alternet—the news magazine and online community that offers original journalism and amplifies the best work from independent media – has released their advice for the issues that President Obama should address and the policies he should promote in his first State of the Union address. 

In an impressive list of recommendations covering everything from health care reform, immigration, and the war on drugs, Alternet’s staff rightly begins by encouraging the President to address the rising income inequality in America.  They note that one in eight Americans is on food stamps while one in five has reported that they had trouble feeding themselves last year.  They also note that unemployment rates for youth, especially minorities, could reach the 20 percent levels this year.  Citing the research on which we have worked with the Center for American Progress, the staff also notes that unmarried women, and especially single mothers, have been among the hardest hit by the current economic downturn.  Their statement is a reminder of the growing body of evidence – from the Current Population Survey, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and other sources—showing that across nearly every economic indicator unmarried women, and especially single heads of households, are under crushing financial pressures. 

The initiatives that President Obama plans to announce this evening – doubling the child and dependent care tax credit, expanding support for families caring for an elderly relative, policies to encourage and reward people who save individually and privately for retirement, and limiting the amount of college graduates’ loan repayments to 10 percent of their discretionary income above a basic living allowance—are critical first steps in helping unmarried women, and indeed the entire middle class, struggling to care for their family and hold onto their jobs. 

Perhaps just as importantly, tonight, unmarried women and other hard-working Americans struggling to make ends meet, need for the president to directly acknowledge their economic challenges and to offer solutions that will help them navigate the economic realities of their everyday lives.