#BlackLivesMatter is about policy and not party
Many Bernie Sanders supporters have been complaining about what seemed to them like an incessant attack on their candidate by #BlackLivesMatter. How could the candidate best position with the values of Liberals and Progressives be the target?
The reality is that Bernie Sanders was targeted initially because of opportunity. His response in my humble opinion was nimble as he quickly started adjusting his staffing and honing his message to ensure that those most affected by social justice inequities understood that it would play a prominent part in his campaign.
This week #BlackLivesMatter attempted to do the same to Hillary Clinton. The Secret Service made that endeavor less than successful. They however had a face to face meeting with Hillary. I received some email from a member of a prominent social justice organization who implied that #BlackLivesMatter may have been suspect because Hillary Clinton was not pressed like Bernie Sanders was. I immediately contacted one of the founders of the organization and was told that the Secret Service stopped their protest before it began. She said they still confronted Clinton. She made a point to say that the presidential race is not over and that their will be more opportunities to confront Hillary Clinton.
Yesterday Jeb Bush as well got confronted by #BlackLivesMatter in Las Vegas. They were able to question Jeb Bush and school him on stats about the criminal justice system and the effects of law enforcement and the for profit prison industrial complex. While Jeb Bush gave generic answers, he now knows every candidate is a target that will be questioned publicly on their social justice stance.
#BlackLivesMatter is not about party politics. It is about an existential problem that is constantly ignored by politicians even as they seek the black and brown vote. Many are oblivious to this problem because it is not immediately in front of them or does not directly affect them. It was wonderful to see the coalition in that room made up of all races and ethnicities supporting the cause of #BlackLivesMatter.