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In law enforcement, I'm glad there's a push for body cameras.

Particularly secondary education AKA college.

Still morphing.

Keep at it. By midnight there will be people here arguing he was a Confederate General commanding the First Vermont Regiment of the CSA.

and I think his odds will improve if he demonstrates to PoC that he fully hears the concerns of the blacklivesmatter movement.

There's no getting around that he isn't polling well in the AA community. Maybe it's just name recognition. But maybe there's something he isn't hearing or communicating well yet, too.

Bernie has no more to apologize for than any other Democratic candidate, yet he's the target of this racially divisive meme. It's not based in anything derogatory on his record. You should ask yourself why this is happening to him and not her.

And he's willing to listen, he even had scheduled a meeting with BLM after the forum, that understandably was cancelled because of their unruly behavior.
It's utterly disgusting the swift-boating being done to Bernie...understandable from the Hillary campaign, that's how they roll...but I expected better from the NRN community. If they're doing it to support Hillary, good luck...she'll be no different than Obama, and he's barely lifted a finger.

And perhaps you are right. Perhaps the whole meme is like swiftboating Kerry, turning a real strength into a perceived weakness.

But he isn't polling as well with the AA community as his record warrants, and my OP is my own wrestling with why that is the case.

I do agree that no other candidate's civil rights record is stronger.

And not others who either ignore them (Hillary) or disagree with them (GOP)?

Could it be they simply support the other candidate?

When Bernie attempted to answer the question they were shouting, they shouted that down too. Did they not want to hear an answer?

Why is Bernie held to this bizarre standard, but the candidate the Hillary is not?

Something doesn't smell right with this whole thing.

the presidency as much as you want, that will not change
the situation. The real powers concerning that issue lies
in the states, and that is where the protests should be
strong.

The idea that the bully pulpit has the power is just
wrong; otherwise our present POTUS could have
changed the whole culture.

and on the murder of Trayvon Martin. You're right about the limits of the bully pulpit--but the OP is right, too.

...neither candidate was, and that's a shame.

Good luck getting candidates to speak there again.

I must agree with your OP on a couple of items.

Yes, even though I am half brown and half white, the browns know I am brown and whites know I am white. Thus my life is pretty privileged. I have a happy and open face and no one is threatened by my 5 foot stature. It works in my favor in so many ways.

Bernie needs to have a real conversation with the AA community. He does need to hear what they are truly asking him for. It is a shame, today it could have been one of the many conversations he needs.

Today it was about Black Lives Matter and I cannot be angry at what happened today. All candidates should be able to take this kind of event and bend with it. The Presidency is going to be so much harder than a roomful of "disruptive" people.

I would have preferred that the candidates been given more time to speak and address the #blacklivesmatter speakers' concerns. However, I noticed that when Bernie spoke about law enforcement, everyone listened. They began chanting again when he thought he was speaking to their concerns, but they disagreed.

Ideally, both he and O'Malley will reflect on this, and come away with a better understanding of why there was a disconnect.

And I do believe Bernie has the mental curiosity to want to know why things happened. I want to believe, he will internalize this event.


Though, really...it is a small event and way early in the process. So much more is going to happen in the next year.

Do we really want to take points off Bernie Sanders' lifetime progressive street cred because he doesn't come up with the 100% politically correct response to the latest game of gotcha? He's not going to walk on eggshells for anyone, especially people who are behaving like jerks.

He does want to stay on message when he is campaigning, and I do support his message.

And I think he has enormous civil rights credibility. I wouldn't support him if he didn't.

As to whether the disruptors were behaving like jerks: for me, it's like a hologram. A lot of people wanted to hear what both he and O'Malley wanted to say, and both candidates took time out of their tight schedules to address this crowd. A lot of other people are boiling over because of this ongoing problem that is only beginning to be addressed by more than handwringing, and for them it's an ends justifying the means moment.

Who was right or wrong, who was a jerk or not, is not as interesting to me as what happens next, and how the various candidates address this issue, in a way that resonates in the AA community.

we need community police where the police are seen as part of the community not oppressors. I'm not sure BLM heard him, they were protesting.

In Iowa he said

It isn't as if he's never addressed these concerns.

But community policing sometimes becomes harrassing, too. And there is some difference between "where the police are seen as part of the community not oppressors" and "where the police see everyone as part of the community they are protecting." I realize I'm splitting hairs, because the two are related.

I do get frustrated that Bernie seems to be taking singular heat, when I don't see any of the other candidates dealing with this issue more strongly than he is. So I'm not condemning Bernie at all. Just noting that he isn't polling well with the AA community, and today was a missed opportunity.

if he'd been treated with a modicum of respect, and met as planned with people after to hear their input, he would have responded positively?

in advance to ask the candidates what they were planning on doing to combat racism and abuse of power within law enforcement. Candidates are human beings, and although Bernie does very well when the media is hostile, he was unprepared to have his scheduled time taken up by people whom he probably considered allies.

"I really, really love Bernie, BUT????

And I'm sure he will. I just need him to get that message straight, loud and clear. We are struggling in this country and it really does go beyond economics.

He is also my candidate of choice and I want other black people to realize Sanders would make an excellent choice as President.

Memes are not truth.

Was when McCain held a press conference to complain about not being given information on Benghazi, at the same time Clinton (?) was in a Congressional Committee meeting giving them an update on Benghazi.
Peep just covering their ears, sticking their heads in the sand, and being stupid. Their minds are made up before they even hear the facts. They just want a camera to bitch in front of...not results.

I was out canvassing yesterday and today for a local candidate. But I know Bernie is on the right side of the issue. I should have specified in the OP that today, watching the video, his response was incomplete. Not wrong, just incomplete.

I am wrestling with all of this myself because I see Bernie as being a great candidate for PoC, yet not polling well. Today, watching the video, I saw where he thought he was directly addressing their concerns, but they disagreed.

And mothers that go without necessities to make sure their children have clothing and other things they need. When did you stop caring about people making enough money that they don't qualify as working for slave wages? Why the hell are you stomping on the needs of poor people and even middle class people?

and he talked about the need for community-based policing. It was difficult for him to fully address the concerns in question with all the shouting, but he did his best.

I hope he keeps saying it--I'm sure he will--and that people hear him.

All the candidates should, in a separate venue just for the movement. We both know the other side won't give them the time of day and we have to be better than that.

I just wanted to let you know that he is aware of the issues and has spoken about them.

you heard it.

And I'm glad it got many recs on DU. It sounds as if he spoke fantastically well last night in Phoenix, too.

And others who have a stake in pushing that farther. Bernie will fight for an end to racism because it's the right thing to do...not because he was put in a political bind. I think he gets #blacklivesmatter. But I also think there are a number of people who have a stake in pushing the notion that he doesnt.

I think he has always fought for an end to racism. His messaging at Netroots was just a little off--understandable, given that he was dealing with an unexpected situation.

I think other candidates have said worse, very deliberately and when not being disrupted. I'll never forget Clinton's hardworking, white Americans comment.