NPR - After 'Calling Out' Sanders Over Event Snub, Vermont Leaders Of Color Offer Path Forward

[TomCADem]

This is why I do not support Bernie. I think a lot of his populist platform is based on dog whistles meant to stoke white working class resentment such as his past opposition to immigration reform, railing against trade (with Mexico and China, but Canada is okay), complaining about globalism, his support of laws immunizing gun makers from lawsuits, and his attacks on the Democratic party for promoting "identity politics."

So, he holds a progressive conference in Vermont with prominent Democratic critics Cornel West and Susan Sarandon, but fails to invite the grass roots members of the civil rights community such as the local NAACP.

http://digital.vpr.net/post/after-calling-out-sanders-over-event-snub-vermont-leaders-color-offer-path-forward#stream/0

Sen. Bernie Sanders has in many ways become the figurehead of the national progressive movement, but leaders of color in Vermont say his spotty track record on racial justice issues could undermine his status as its leader.

Now, those same advocates are trying to lay the groundwork for what they hope will be a more collaborative relationship with Sanders in the future.

Sanders, as well as an institute that bears his name, have come under fire in recent days for failing to invite Vermont-based social justice advocates to a three-day gathering in Burlington.

In an open letter to Sanders and the Sanders Institute, more than a dozen racial and social justice advocates said that “Vermonters in marginalized positions” have found themselves “excluded from the movement” that Sanders is trying to foster.

[still_one]

1. That he holds a progressive conference with people such as Cornel West and Susan Sarandon who

actively worked and encouraged people not to vote for the Democratic nominee in 2016 is another reason why this group has no credibility