The candidate spoke at the Schomberg Center last night, covering a range of issues including the Flint water crisis, systemic racism, and criminal justice reform. To succeed in the primaries, she needs to hold on to her “firewall” of voters of color, and as Rembert Browne noted after the event, “She was chastising her own privilege, putting the privilege of whiteness front and center.”
The crowd responded powerfully to Clinton’s message, even shouting their support and chanting her name when she fell into a long coughing fit:
As we move closer and closer towards the pivotal South Carolina primary, it’s to be expected that both Clinton and Bernie Sanders will be seen as pandering to black voters. But as Michael Eric Dyson said on the most recent episode of the Intersection podcast, the act of pandering isn’t necessarily a bad thing:
“I’m glad somebody’s working hard to get the black vote. ... Pander on, if you will, because we need the attention. The people whose backs are against the wall, whose water is essentially being poisoned, need the attention of the federal government.”
You can listen to the full episode here.