After the defeat of Roy Moore in Alabama’s senatorial election last week, the left-wing media and Democratic party gushed over the heroism of the black women who ensured that Doug Jones would win the state’s Senate seat.

The left heaped praise on the blacks who contributed to ensuring a smaller majority for the GOP in the Senate — and why shouldn’t they? The Democrats have relied on the black vote for decades, and blacks have enthusiastically accommodated them.

After so many years of black Americans giving the Democrats their support, one would think that the party would enact policies that are beneficial to the black community. However, this hasn’t been the case.

To the black voters who still provide the Democrats with your undying support, I’d like to ask a simple question: what have you gotten from the Democrats in exchange for your votes so far? Moreover, what do you hope to get from them in the future?

If you’re hoping that voting for the Democratic Party will yield positive results for you and your families, you probably shouldn’t get your hopes up. They have been taking your vote for granted while giving you nothing in return.

The Democratic Party’s “Gratitude”

After Doug Jones won the election, the Democrats — and many Republicans — heaved a sigh of relief. The left won a victory in a predominantly red state. Conservatives didn’t have to worry about the fallout that would have materialized from having an alleged child molester with an “R” next to his name in a position of authority.

When the election results were in, Representative Joe Crowley (D-NY) celebrated the vote, calling it “something that is remarkable, and something that we as Democrats not only need to take note of but respect and understand that commitment.” He added, “there has to be a two-way street of the African-American community, as well.”

Representative Linda Sanchez (D-CA), the vice chairwoman of the House Democratic Caucus stated that the election demonstrates that “when we engage, organize and turn out every community, Democrats win.”

Black Voters Are Becoming More Skeptical

While blacks in Alabama were happy about Jones’ win, they also sent a message to the Democrats. In a piece written for The Huffington Post, author Julia Craven spoke with blacks who worked to get Jones elected.

Carissa Crayton, a worker for Jones’ campaign, told The Post, “Don’t just overlook the hard work that we did,” she said. “Don’t overlook the hard work that we’ve been doing.”

After detailing the plight of many black women in America, the author criticized liberals, writing that “they want the votes without the grievances.”

Former basketball player Charles Barkley — who is also a Republican — campaigned for Jones. After the election, he lambasted the Democrats for their treatment of black voters:

“They’ve always had our votes, and they have abused our votes, and this is a wakeup call. We’ve got it in a great position now, but this is a wakeup call for Democrats to do better for black people and poor white people.”

The remarks made by these individuals are telling — they show a skepticism when it comes to the Democrats’ willingness to address the needs of black Americans.

The Hard, Cold, Reality

The Democrats’ appeal to identity politics along with their message of victimhood has earned them the loyalty of black America. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to most black Americans, their policies have been a prime contributor to the decline of blacks in the United States.

Noted economist and Harvard professor Thomas Sowell points out that before the 1960s, when the Democratic Party expanded the welfare state, living conditions were improving for blacks. In fact, in some ways, blacks were doing better during the first 100 years after slavery than they were after the policies of the 60s. He writes:

“Were children raised with only one parent as common at any time during the first 100 years after slavery as in the first 30 years after the great expansion of the welfare state in the 1960s? As of 1960, 22 percent of black children were raised with only one parent, usually the mother. Thirty years later, two-thirds of black children were being raised without a father present.”

According to Sowell, the black poverty rate had been nearly halved between 1940 and 1960. Between 1936 and 1959, the incomes of black Americans had doubled. Unfortunately, by 1974, government benefits were twenty times higher than what they had been in 1965. In the same year, federal spending on welfare programs represented 16% of the United States’ gross national product. By 1977, the number of Americans receiving assistance from the government had more than doubled since they were enacted in 1960.

The reason why the numbers concerning single-parent homes are important is that children raised by one parent are drastically more likely to live in poverty. This fact applies to families of all races. Robert Rector, a senior research fellow with the Heritage Foundation , states, “the absence of marriage increases the frequency of child poverty 700 percent.”

It doesn’t take a scholar to figure out that families are important to financial success. Dr. Martin Luther King expressed similar sentiments, “nothing is so much needed as a secure family life for a people to pull themselves out of poverty.”

The welfare state has had a destructive impact on black families. The system rewards Americans for raising their children in single homes and punishes those who decide to start families. Programs like public housing, food stamps, daycare, and temporary assistance gave more money to mothers who were unmarried. If she married, the government reduced her benefits by 10% to 20%.

The government has incentivized single motherhood and absentee fathers, which led to greater poverty in the black community. While the overall poverty rate has fallen since Johnson’s War on Poverty, the rate for black Americans is at 27%, which is twice as high as other Americans.

Democratic Policies Hurt Blacks

If black Americans want government policies that could help them, they shouldn’t look to the Democratic Party. They have won the black vote for decades without affecting positive change in the black community. Leftist politicians push policies that cause far more harm than good — in fact, the cities where blacks are doing the worst are run by — you guessed it — Democrats.

The Democrats needed black voters to show up last week to push Doug Jones to victory — and the black voters did their part. Unfortunately, Jones’ win — as with other Democrat-won elections — is a pyrrhic victory for black Americans.

The Democrats will not reward their votes with anything except more policies that keep many black Americans living in poverty. Hopefully, black Americans in Alabama and the rest of the country won’t get their hopes up because of the election.