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2016 Postmortem
Showing Original Post only (View all)#BlackTwitter Turns On Bernie Sanders [View all]
Asawin SuebsaengA heated moment with #BlackLivesMatter protesters over the weekend turned the progressive favorite into a mocking hashtag for black activists sick of his seeming inattention to race.
Black Twitter has a bone to pick with Bernie Sanders.
The 2016 lefty darlings seeming unwillingness to talk about race on the campaign trail is not sitting well with some black activists and observers, and a tense moment turned #BernieSoBlack into a dominant trending topic over the weekend.
Confronted Saturday by protesters at the Netroots Nation conference in Phoenix chanting Black lives matter! and What side are you on? Sanders was clearly annoyed. Black lives, of course, matter, the populist and self-described socialist senator said. I spent 50 years of my life fighting for civil rights and for dignity If you dont want me to be here, thats OK. I dont want to outscream people.
As a senator from Vermont, which is roughly 95 percent white, Sanders has had scant direct experience connecting with black constituents and voters, and he prefers to focus his speeches on income inequality. His campaign events are overwhelmingly white, and his own advisers have concededand he himself has acknowledgedthat he is still a virtual unknown among African-American voters.
Basically, the Bernie Sanders campaign has a lot of groundwork to do with regards to building the relationship with black voters, Terrell Starr, a senior editor at Alternet, told The Daily Beast. There is still privilege with how white progressives view progressive politics with regards to racial discrimination And what we saw (Saturday) was an example of that disconnect.
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http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/19/blacktwitter-turns-on-bernie-sanders.html
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His supporters spent all day attacking black folks on Twitter. They should have checked themselves.
bravenak
Jul 2015
#2
Yup. This is one way the supporters can actually hurt the candidate more than he can hurt himself.
Erich Bloodaxe BSN
Jul 2015
#32
If Black folks don't know Sanders and he needs to outreach more, how can they "turn on him"?
KeepItReal
Jul 2015
#3
I suspect that Bernie will address this and add more people of color to his staff to help
Dustlawyer
Jul 2015
#28
More often than not, when a white politician refers to MLK, suspicion radar kicks in.
MohRokTah
Jul 2015
#70
Oh, it's a falling out. I unsupported him even though I hate Hillary. So now I get O'Malley.
bravenak
Jul 2015
#10
Fine. You know better than I how black people are taking this. How could I possibly know?
bravenak
Jul 2015
#24
I have come to the conclusion that the liberal use of emoticons is equivalent to Screaming . . .
hueymahl
Jul 2015
#47
It was tweets like this from Bernie supporters that resulted in the "berniesoblack hashtag. eom
MohRokTah
Jul 2015
#71
Saying that to black activists will only result in black activists mocking your candidate
MohRokTah
Jul 2015
#74
I don't think Bernie needs Hillary to help him appear tone deaf to this issue....
Walk away
Jul 2015
#82
She's a racist, too! She made racist statements in 2008! As did her surrogates and fans!
Liberal_Stalwart71
Jul 2015
#95
His attitude at the beginning is going to hurt too. He seemed petulant. You can be petulant
stevenleser
Jul 2015
#78
Bernie made no gaffe, the hecklers at netroots own whatever it was they were trying to do
seveneyes
Jul 2015
#90