2016 Postmortem

mhatrw

(10,786 posts) Tue Sep 22, 2015, 02:28 PM Sep 2015

2 Months Later: Should Sanders Be Thanking Black Lives Matter?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ian-reifowitz/two-months-after-netroots_b_8177874.html

It's been two months and two days since Netroots Nation, where Black Lives Matter activists disrupted a town-hall meeting featuring Martin O'Malley and Bernie Sanders. Without rehashing the details, it was not Bernie's best moment. Nevertheless, many argued that in the long run he would benefit from the confrontation, that it would make him a better candidate by pushing him to address racial injustice broadly and, more specifically, the disproportionate level of police abuse faced by African Americans. As for me, I said back then that Sen. Sanders as well as all the major Democratic candidates would ultimately thank Black Lives Matter for that push. So, how has Bernie done since Netroots Nation?

On the matter of substance--addressing the issues raised by Black Lives Matter--Bernie has gotten the message. It's not for me to say whether activists should proclaim themselves satisfied with him or any other candidate. The official Black Lives Matter organization has stated that it will not endorse any office seeker or any political party. Some have questioned that strategy, but, on the other hand, the activists may simply believe that their cause is better served by remaining neutral. Time will tell. Either way, there is no question that Sen. Sanders has responded.

After being asked at Netroots Nation to speak out on these issues and to "say her name," Bernie quickly did so. The very next day he said the name of Sandra Bland and condemned the "outrageous" treatment she suffered at the hands of the police. Going further, he tweeted that if Ms. Bland had been a middle-class white woman, she would not have been treated the same way, and in public remarks a few days later added, "If that was a white woman, nobody believes for a second that would have happened." One week after Netroots, Bernie offered a comprehensive discussion of race in an address to the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

In addition to changing his campaign rhetoric, Sanders added to his website a comprehensive issue page devoted to "racial justice," a move that earned a positive response from leading Black Lives Matter activist DeRay Mckesson among others. Having also been called out for a lack of diversity among his top campaign staff, Bernie hired Symone Sanders (no relation), a "young, black, criminal justice advocate and supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement," as his national press secretary. Within two weeks of Netroots Nation, one headline (yes, it was BuzzFeed, but still) declared, "Bernie Sanders Discovers His Inner #BlackLivesMatter."

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