Black democratic leaders in southern states are not happy with Bernie Sanders after his rather dismissive comment on why southern black voters went for Hillary Clinton.
Those leaders include South Carolina Democratic Party Chairman Jaime Harrison, Louisiana Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Carter Peterson, Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Allison Tant, Democratic Party of Georgia Chairman DuBose Porter, Mississippi Democratic Party Chairman Rickey Cole, former South Carolina Gov. Jim Hodges, and former Democratic National Committee Chairman Don Fowler. These individuals penned the following letter to Bernie Sanders stating their displeasure with his remarks.
April 20, 2016
Senator Bernie Sanders
131 Church Street,
Suite 300
Burlington, Vermont
Dear Senator Sanders,
We commend you on running a
spirited campaign that has energized and mobilized a new generation of voters,
but we are concerned about the way you and your campaign have characterized the
South.
As you may recall in 2006, the
Democratic National Committee chaired by former Vermont Governor
Howard Dean took two historic
steps towards diversity and inclusion. First,
the DNC modified its Presidential Primary process and added South Carolina and
Nevada (states with sizable minority populations) to join the historic early
states of Iowa and New Hampshire.
Governor Dean stated at the time that he “strongly believed in the
importance of broadening participation in the nomination process to better
reflect the rich racial, regional and economic diversity of the Democratic
Party.” Second, Governor Dean initiated
a 50-state strategy to strengthen the Democratic Party and amplify Democratic
voices in all states and not just states traditionally dominated by
Democrats.
The greatest asset we have as a
party is our diversity—a diversity of cultures, religions, ethnicities,
experiences, and backgrounds.
Yet over the course of this
Democratic primary, you and your surrogates have sought to minimize
Secretary Hillary Clinton’s
victories throughout the South as a symptom of a region that, as you put it,
“distorts reality.” You argue that the
South is “the most conservative part” of America; implying states that
traditionally vote Republican in a general election are not worth contesting in
a Democratic Primary.
There are several issues with
these assertions.
First, according to the U.S.
Census Bureau, “55% of the African American population lives in the South, and
105 Southern counties has a black population of 50 percent or higher.” The African American community has been the
most reliable and consistent vote for the Democratic Party for a generation,
and in this year’s primaries, in the Southern states of South Carolina,
Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, and North Carolina, African Americans
represented between 31-71% of the Democratic electorate. To dismiss the importance of this region is
to minimize the importance of the voices of a core constituency for our
party.
Second, the Democratic Primary
vote in Southern States was a crucial component for Barack Obama’s ultimate
success in 2008. Wins in South Carolina,
and other southern states during the Democratic presidential primaries laid the
groundwork for President Obama to build a message and campaign organization
that resonated in North Carolina, Virginia, and Florida. Many of the non-battleground southern states
even utilized these networks to assist with voter outreach efforts, mobilizing
thousands of volunteers to make calls and engage in GOTV operations.
Third, several of the states that
you have won like Oklahoma, Idaho, and Utah overall are far more conservative
in their general election results than the states in the South. Moreover, current polls show that the Democratic electorate
across the South is consistently among the most liberal anywhere in the
nation. In fact, some of the most
liberal members of Congress hail from majority-minority districts in these
states. Regardless, it is important that
Democrats in red and blue states alike feel supported by the Party and our
presidential candidates.
Democrats ought to embrace the
South and all regions to build an organization that can compete in all 50
states. We must continue winning states
like Virginia and North Carolina, and we can’t write off states like Tennessee
and Georgia. Even Texas could turn blue
in less than a generation. And beyond
the presidential race, there are important statewide and other federal races
happening every cycle. Boosting
Democrats’ chances in those seats is vital to enacting a progressive agenda at
the local level and in General Assembles. This can only happen if we show up,
speak to the region’s needs, and compete for every vote, even in the face of
long odds. That’s how change really
happens.
Southern Democrats already have
to deal with Republicans refusing to expand Medicaid, deteriorating infrastructure,
and the lack of adequate funding for our public schools. We need our national
Democratic leaders to invest in our races and causes—to amplify our voices, not
diminish them.
In contrast, Hillary Clinton has
spent her entire career trying to help people all across the South. She saw a region full of families and
children of every color, and instead of diminishing them, she worked to build
them up. She is committed to a long-term strategy of rebuilding our state
Democratic parties, to assist candidates up and down the ballot, and to serve
as a voice for the voiceless. She has
not dismissed the importance of states that you have won, because she realizes
s that to be President of the United States you have to be a champion for all
of the states. To be leader of the Party, you have to be with Democrats in all
states as well. That includes the ones you won and yes, even the ones you
lose.
And that’s why we’re with her.
Respectfully,
Hon. Jim Hodges
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Don Fowler
|
Fmr. Governor of South Carolina
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Fmr. DNC Chairman
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Allison Tant
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Hon. DuBose Porter
|
Chair, Florida Democratic Party
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Chair, Georgia Democratic Party
|
Sen.
Karen Carter Peterson
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Rickey Cole
|
Chair, Louisiana Democratic Party
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Chair,
Mississippi Democratic Party
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Jaime Harrison
Chair, South Carolina Democratic
Party
