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In reply to the discussion: Bernie admits need to get schooled on African-American incarceration* [View all]JCanete
(5,272 posts)147. you can absolutely be generous and charitable of spirit
and not necessarily know the extent to which a certain injustice is at play. Then your behavior, I'd guess, if it manifested in progressive positions, would be more a function of being kind and compassionate rather than understanding a grave injustice at the heart of it all...you may believe in rehabilitation or leniency or redemption, or that over-incarceration is bad and a negative. you may believe in restorative justice. You can be on all of those pages and still not realize just how tilted the justice system is against people of color, from the profiling, to the arrests to the convictions to the sentencing. You can believe people of color have not gotten a fair shake, or have the silly carry-over idea(which I've had at some point in my life too before I learned more) that black people commit more crime because the circumstances give them little choice...whereas at the root of that assumption is the fallacy that black people actually commit more crime, versus the reality that people of color are simply more likely to be charged and convicted of a crime.
That Sanders wasn't entirely aware of just how deep some of these wrongs go does disappoint me but also surprises me given his advocacy of policy. But I've never been a hero worshipper and I've certainly been aware that he has had blind spots. If people want to talk about areas where I think he is weak, I'm all for it. If they want to make some shit up and bitch and moan about anything he does and turn it into a negative, or call completely reasonable policies unicorns, fuck yes, I'm going to push back.
What you are talking about regarding detention of immigrants is on everybody's radar today and everybody is talking about it. Credit to those literally out there on the front line. But what of the issues of systemic incarceration and its imbalance that I was talking about, or that Sanders is speaking to in his newfound epiphany? Has that really been a national issue to be hammered home for democrats? Has imprisonment without trial been? When?
as to how people conduct their time as public figures....I suggest they condcuct it the most effective way. Sometimes being among the protestors is the most effective way of using your influence and voice. Sometimes other approaches reach more people, or the right people. I'll grant that it isn't heroism to go around and preech a politicdal philosophy, at least here in America today. That doesn't make it less important or valuable. I'm not sure that our politicians that are risking arrest, are quite putting themselves on the line at the level you suggest either, though I respect their efforts.
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Bernie admits need to get schooled on African-American incarceration* [View all]
EffieBlack
Jun 2018
OP
The only reason a senator and 30 year pol - especially one supposedly so excellent on civil rights
EffieBlack
Jun 2018
#107
We wasted all that time in 2015-16 on a divisive campaign on such an uniformed candidate...
brush
Jun 2018
#58
Very sad. We had to fight all that divisiveness, plus Putin's bots, repug vote suppression/hacking..
brush
Jun 2018
#74
Bernie has some blind spots--some areas where he is unquestionably going to a well that is outdated
JCanete
Jun 2018
#100
what a helpful folllow up...so glad you chimed back in. I certainly learned something. Why bother?
JCanete
Jun 2018
#204
I remember when she told us the biggest worry for small town people was the opioid epidemic...
Hekate
Jun 2018
#16
Yep, a lot of time was wasted fighting against a woefully uninformed opponent in a divisive campaign
brush
Jun 2018
#63
all of it really has to do with power and money though. All the rest of it happens/ happened
JCanete
Jun 2018
#104
I guess he evolved since the campaign because just 18 months ago he thought AAs...
brush
Jun 2018
#65
Right. He thought most drug dealers in jail were African American. I stand corrected.
brush
Jun 2018
#97
Ok .. for the sake of argument, assume Mic's numbers that Soledad quoted are wrong and let's
EffieBlack
Jun 2018
#109
He's a progressive who wants to be president. He should be much better informed than that.
brush
Jun 2018
#125
He's not "95% of Americans." He's a senator who was running for president and claiming to be
EffieBlack
Jun 2018
#127
Yes, when Bernie moves to the left - it's "evolving." When it's anyone else, it's "pivoting"
ehrnst
Jun 2018
#156
Why is that any less ignorant? Seriously, he went to Ferguson and had no idea what was written in
bettyellen
Jun 2018
#28
Nope, following the news and deeply disappointed is more accurate. But hey, you don't care...
bettyellen
Jun 2018
#30
A direct quote from Bernie reported by one of his most fervent supporters is "Bernie hate?"
EffieBlack
Jun 2018
#73
I guess if he didn't spend so much time hating on the Democratic party people might start
MrsCoffee
Jun 2018
#166
Yeah, I guess calling the party an absolute failure is just pointing out some flaws.....
MrsCoffee
Jun 2018
#171
I followed the news about Ferguson, Other towns with similar problems, and also the
bettyellen
Jun 2018
#83
A Democrat/progressive candidate should be aware of that. Also that AAs are not drug dealers.
brush
Jun 2018
#69
Cute. But Clinton was actually referring to crack dealers as super predators, not AA youth.
brush
Jun 2018
#80
Yup. It is encouraging to watch what women can do when someone steps on our basic right as a person
Wwcd
Jun 2018
#124
Months ago when she said she wasn't running again. Consider yourself enlightened.
brush
Jun 2018
#70
No one seriously believes Hillary has closed the door on another run in 2020...
InAbLuEsTaTe
Jun 2018
#85
Oh please. Hillary has moved on and Sanders should too. We have a deep bench of young...
brush
Jun 2018
#90
Oh please, how I wish you were right... but then why would Hillary say...
InAbLuEsTaTe
Jun 2018
#128
A few months ago? Really? She's indicated much more recently that she's run her last campaign.
brush
Jun 2018
#130
Even that is not quite accurate - as some of the African Americans (and whites ) in prison are from
karynnj
Jun 2018
#56
If I am reading this correctly, only 1.52% of people in Vermont are African-American.
Sophia4
Jun 2018
#59
It's not the number imprisoned, but the ratio of African Americans to whites...
cynatnite
Jun 2018
#121
There is so much wrong with this...OK to discriminate in a small state with a low Black
Demsrule86
Jun 2018
#159
It's proof that racial injustice exists in Vermont and Bernie doesn't know that.
cynatnite
Jun 2018
#123
The number of African-Americans in Vermont remains small compared to other states.
Sophia4
Jun 2018
#236
About 1.5% of Vermont's residents are African Amer, but represent almost 11X whites incarcerated:
George II
Jun 2018
#228
What is your source for a population of 8,000 for African-Americans in Vermont?
Sophia4
Jun 2018
#234
I would still be worried, but that number would not get the press that the California
Sophia4
Jun 2018
#240
I don't think you can say someone was schooled if they are not in the conversation.
aikoaiko
Jun 2018
#71
What fun. Suddenly, evolving on the issues is fine and The Intercept is suspicious.
betsuni
Jun 2018
#133
Soledad misquoted @mic. She DIDN'T misquote Sanders or take him out of context
EffieBlack
Jun 2018
#179
Now that the tweet is gone because it was wrong will you self delete the thread? nt
Quixote1818
Jun 2018
#165
Not "debunked" at all. She quoted Sanders correctly. That's the basis of discussion here.
NurseJackie
Jun 2018
#181
So, if I wanted to find a list of his major legislative accomplishments, where would I look?
NurseJackie
Jun 2018
#180
And nothing YOU'VE said obscures the fact that Bernie hasn't clue one what to do about any of this
EffieBlack
Jun 2018
#212
I noticed that "super predators" was thrown in there, without full context! Revealing? Perhaps.
George II
Jun 2018
#225