About That Meeting Between Clinton and The Mothers of Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice and others

[berni_mccoy]

This is what they had to say (from: http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/02/politics/hillary-clinton-trayvon-martin-chicago/ ):

Sabrina Fulton: "It was a powerful meeting."

Samaria Rice: "We discussed a lot of reform. Um, Ideas. Change across the nation about how this nation can prove itself." "All we can do is sit back and wait for action, wait to see what's gonna happen."

Dontre Hamilton's Mother: "All the work that the mother's are doing, on behalf of our loved ones, is working. People are asking to hear our story. People are asking to find out what kind of legislature and policies that were changed. She (Clinton) didn't make any promises. We have literature and language, from Hillary's (campaign) stating what they are planning to do if she is elected for President, but we didn't get anything that was grounded."

In other words, Clinton gave them nothing but lip service. To her credit, at least she didn't give them false hope.

[luvspeas]

1. You seem to love other words more than the actual words...

I'm seeing a pattern here.

[MADem]

10. With absolutely no shame, no embarassment, either. Incredible! nt

[DemocratSinceBirth]

59. There are some posters here whose raison d'etre is to demonize, disrupt, and discourage.

Proverbs 6 16-19

There are six things the Lord hates,
seven that are detestable to him:
17 haughty eyes,
a lying tongue,
hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked schemes,
feet that are quick to rush into evil,
19 a false witness who pours out lies
and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

[MADem]

63. ....and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

Ain't that the truth! Way too much of that going on!

[DemocratSinceBirth]

65. Whether a person is a believer or not there is a lot of really good writing in the Bible.

eom

[sufrommich]

2. .........

"She is a mother and she is a woman and I felt she understood where we were coming from," said Samaria Rice, mother of Tamir Rice. "It doesn't matter what color we are, I felt that she really understand where we are coming from."

Fulton, Martin's mother, said the meeting with Clinton was "powerful" and "productive."



They don't appear to feel they were "just given lip service". Sounds like Clinton was there to listen.

[JaneyVee]

3. At least Bernie protected the gun industry from any lawsuits.

We wouldn't want to infringe on domestic abusers such as George Zimmerman's 2nd Amendment rights.

[Fearless]

6. Complete bull.

[arcane1]

7. Yes, because Zimmerman gives a rat's ass if a gunmaker can be sued

[1StrongBlackMan]

16. The gun maker does, though ... very much. n/t

[Mike__M]

19. Did Secretary Clinton apologize to them

for her insensitivity in proclaiming in the debate, that "I know how to Stand my Ground"?

Because those words might have unintended connotations in any discussion that is even tangential to race and Zimmerman. What would we think if we heard a Republican say "Stand your Ground" to a cheering audience.

[OilemFirchen]

45. Oh FFS.

Do they remove all your filters before you sign up these days?

[luvspeas]

52. bazinga! n/t

[Mike__M]

68. Right. I shouldn't have mentioned this.

Lesson learned. I will refrain from lifting innocuous comments out of context and spinning them into toxic innuendo.
It makes me look bad.

[HassleCat]

4. A very difficult issue

Its so difficult, even the people from Black Lives Matter don't seem to know exactly what to do about it. It will require real leadership from any president who expects to make progress in police reform, prison reform, etc.

[Fearless]

5. In other words... publicity stunt.

[luvspeas]

14. She took the time and effort to reach out...

Sanders little "meeting" with the Bland family was not even his idea. Who's to say he would have ever done it on his own. Maybe the meeting was kept private because he would not look good.

I can infer call kinds of things too.

[Sheepshank]

35. sure, call it what you want, but it's more than Bernie ever thought to do.

maybe that is the point of your post. Envy.

[frylock]

47. Bernie met quietly with Sandra Bland's family..

no press, no fanfare. Later, when asked by Anderson Cooper if Black Lives Matter, Bernie unequivocally stated "Black Lives Matter." He then went on to list the names of some of the most recent victims of systemic police abuse. I forget, what was your candidate's answer to that question at the debate?

[Sheepshank]

48. nah, Bernie pulled a publicity stunt.

see how that works. I can say whatever I want on the interwebs...I was originally responding to someone else, but you go ahead and jump in any time.

[frylock]

53. Right, that's why Sanders had the press in tow when he met with them..

Oh, wait, he didn't. In fact we didn't learn about it until days later when Sandra Bland's family mentioned it(probably around the same time that Hillary determined that playing up the "shouting" angle would appeal to the low-info types). See how that works? Facts. Get some.

[Fearless]

56. Bwahahaha! Best joke I've heard yet today!

[MADem]

8. What a rather nasty and unsubstantiated assessment. You are creative, I'll give you that.

That was a TWO HOUR MEETING, and here's the take away in the words of the people who attended, as opposed to your little "interpretation" of the event:

According to the women, Clinton did not make any explicit promises to them, but did pledge to stay engaged in their causes and work on criminal justice reform. All of the women described the meeting as productive and said Clinton appeared earnest and trustworthy.

"She is a mother and she is a woman and I felt she understood where we were coming from," said Samaria Rice, mother of Tamir Rice. "It doesn't matter what color we are, I felt that she really understand where we are coming from."

Fulton, Martin's mother, said the meeting with Clinton was "powerful" and "productive."

"It was a very powerful meeting, it was very powerful," she said.

Clinton tweeted about the meeting afterward, saying that she was "grateful to spend time today with mothers who have lost a child to violence and turned their grief into a national call to action."

Unbelievable how you could throw shade like you did.

[berni_mccoy]

13. Unsubstantiated? Hmmm

A direct link to article with video and I quoted their exact words.

But you can look at any fact and deny it. Many peps do that you know

[MADem]

15. That bullshit assessment at the end was all your own, and

it wasn't reflected ANYWHERE in the article. In fact, the tenor of the article was the exact opposite of that crap you threw in at the end.

How's that for a "fact," hmmm? Here's a pro tip: Don't make shit up and expect people to buy it. It never ends well.

[berni_mccoy]

17. You could tell from Hamilton's voice

That there was disappointment. Not necessarily in Hillary herself, but in how insurmountable this problem seems to be.

[MADem]

22. Oh, look--a pivot and a backtrack.

Anyone who isn't "disappointed" in how black people are getting fucked over in this country is certainly "not black" and might well have other issues with regard to equality of opportunity.

When the word "powerful" is used repeatedly, you just might want to let that just be what it is, and not try to downgrade the POV of the families of the victims with your own personal, political, biased shade.

[berni_mccoy]

39. It's neither. And your response is as sad as you say my OP is... but

whatever.

[MADem]

66. My response is ON point and you know it.

You tried to use the occasion of a private, two-hour meeting with the mothers of murder victims, from communities that have been in the line of fire with no respite, to prosecute a political agenda--and it blew up in your face.

Your editorializing came off as mean-sprited and immature. So "whatever."

[DemocratSinceBirth]

62. As a fair and unbiased observer candor compels me to award this round to you.

EOM

[NCTraveler]

9. Great job by all involved.

We will keep fighting in their loved ones names.

Right wingers will try to use these moments as a negative. Our candidates are doing a great job and it seems they had an excellent meeting with the unchallenged frontrunner of the only party working for equality. That is great.

[Starry Messenger]

11. Keep it up.

Your plan is going to work out just great.

[SunSeeker]

12. LOL

[Vattel]

18. I don't think it is lip service. I think she cares. But we should be asking, "What would she do?"

Obama has done some of what a president can do by having DOJ investigations of local police departments and then threatening to withdraw federal funds if reforms are not instituted. Clinton might use that model to try and get local police to wear body cams, which is something she supports. She could also at least try to do things that Obama hasn't done. Removing marijuana from the federal schedule and supporting state legalization efforts would be great (blacks are arrested at four times the rate of whites for marijuana possession), but she hasn't even said that she wants to take it off the schedule I list. So one problem is that she is out of step with progressives on certain issues that affect police interactions with blacks. Bernie seems to see more clearly the connections between the criminalization of marijuana and social justice, and between educational and economic opportunity and social justice.

[Cosmic Kitten]

21. Hillary should ask what the family wants, not a media bite or photo op

Hillary exploited the family for political opportunity

[Vattel]

24. You might be right. I really don't know what she is thinking.

[Cosmic Kitten]

26. Her general lack of empathy makes me suspicious.

[Vattel]

29. Not to mention her tendencies towards dishonesty.

[Cosmic Kitten]

32. I've noticed that ;~)

[randys1]

40. Who's general lack of empathy? Hillary? Where in holy hell do you see that?

I have heard that before though, on rightwing boards.

[Sheepshank]

49. There's a very easy explanaition why RW talking points are making their way to DU

you're a smart cookie, I don't need to go into details.

[randys1]

50. And all the girls sang

[zeemike]

55. I can tell you when I saw it.

When she said "We came, we saw, he died"...and then laughed about it. That convinced me.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

60. Carl Jung

[A Simple Game]

61. What in the holy hell are you doing on right wing boards or did you get lost when you came here? n/t

[randys1]

64. Nice try, but I will work all day and night to register voters while people here attack the

Democratic candidate.

I will work to prevent the agenda of destroying the Democratic candidate.

I dont want Women to die in alleys, so i will do that.

[A Simple Game]

67. Sorry, then I must admire your ability to spend so much time on right wing boards.

Good for you, I guess.

And yes, it is sad how so many attack Bernie isn't it?

[MADem]

25. Obama's term is not yet over. How do you know he doesn't have a few

plans left in his kit?

Timing is everything, and he's got a year to put a few more florishes on his legacy.

[Vattel]

27. Good point. And he is commuting the sentences of some nonviolent offenders, which is also awesome.

[Cosmic Kitten]

20. Hillary pandering!?!? Say it ain't so

Panderer gonna pander

[MADem]

34. Ugh. Ugly, ugly sentiment.

I'm sure the families of victims looked on that two hour meeting as a "pander."

If you're proud of this post, you shouldn't be:

Cosmic Kitten (2,826 posts)
20. Hillary pandering!?!? Say it ain't so

Panderer gonna pander

[Sheepshank]

51. You seriously mocking a situation where mothers just had their children killed?

...just so you can score political Bernie points? You know that's a huge fail for you and a black mark on Bernie. Pathetic, but judging by your last couple of OP's it's how you are.

[Prism]

23. It's cringey to criticize this

These mothers are being heard, they need to be heard. And that's all I want to take away from that meeting.

I'm not going to criticize anyone for listening to them.

[MADem]

28. +1. nt

[berni_mccoy]

37. It shows she has no more power to do anything about this issue than anyone else has

This issue has been dead for a very long time, ever since the assault weapons law expired.

Unless the NRA is removed from influence, nothing will change. And there is only one way to do that: remove big money from politics.

[Prism]

44. I agree there's not a ton a President can unilaterally do

But, I do want people in power to have to look into the eyes of those who are suffering from our misguided policies.

So, in that context, I'm glad the meeting took place.

[JoePhilly]

30. In other words ... "Hillary bad, Hillary bad, Hillary bad."

[Sheepshank]

31. As a dictator, I'm sure anyone could have made a lot of promises

what a strange and vapid op?

[Kalidurga]

33. Sorry no dice

She gave the movement more visibility. That is very important even if she herself doesn't promise anything. At least the issue is very public now. It's okay to praise her when she does something good.

[mcar]

36. This makes me very sad

There is simply nothing HRC can do that won't be sneered at by some on this board.

[randys1]

38. OK, so as a Bernie supporter, I am wondering what he would have or could have said

differently?

I dont recall what he told BLM as to specifics.

[berni_mccoy]

46. Here are some:

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/55f9ca9ce4b00310edf57b02

Clearly, BLM does not trust any candidate at this point. If you listen to the Hillary Fans on this site, you'd think she had their vote in the bag.

[riversedge]

41. Berni, you are shameless to say such a thing. It was a good listening and learning meeting

for all. Grow up.


...Lesley McSpadden, Brown's mother, said Clinton heard what the group had to say and that they listened to her, too.

"I look forward to what is underway," she said.

The meeting -- which comes during Clinton's push for criminal justice reform -- was held at Sweet Maple Cafe, a small breakfast and lunch establishment in Chicago's University Village.

Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin's mother, said the meeting with Clinton was productive.

"It was a very powerful meeting, it was powerful," she said on camera before heading to the airport.

Rep. Bobby Rush, a longtime Chicago congressman, was seen leaving the cafe shortly after the meeting got underway.

[Politicalboi]

42. It's her cover from BLM

See, I already talked to those mothers, so leave me alone already. Problem solved!

[JaneyVee]

43. This op and comments highlight another reason why....

Black community isn't feeling the Bern.

Keep it up.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

54. So three women are generally positive, and you dismiss their statements for your own narrative.

Amazing

[Doctor_J]

57. she doesn't know how to act honestly on any issue. If there isn't a poll telling her what to think,

She triangulates.

[WIProgressive88]

58. There are plenty of issues for which Hillary deserves criticism. This isn't one of them.