It remains to be seen if the things Bernie learned in Sumter, and from his conversations with Rev. Jackson, will be turned into further policy proposals. But it seems clear that he has taken criticisms of his campaign to heart, and is working to ensure that he's not neglecting any part of the Democratic coalition. Video and more thoughts below.
http://youtu.be/...
In the video, Bernie addresses a small gathering in Sumter, SC. The crowd is not at all the "lily-white" group that he is frequently accused of catering to. The video illustrates a few things (aside from the fact that at least two gentlemen in the front row were more than a little bored with the discussion, and one guy in the back came equipped with a newspaper that he really wanted to show Bernie, regardless of what topic the discussion was on) that bear mentioning:
- Bernie seems to recognize that some of the critiques of his campaign were right. Is he an ally for all Americans? Certainly. Is his heart for equality and justice and progress? No question. But that's not the same thing as having a good grasp of the issues facing each community. In this video, he is engaging in a serious and humble discussion, asking not just for questions from his audience but also for solutions, as when he requests proposals from the lady who asked about child support. She speaks for several minutes while he takes it in.
- Sanders knows how to listen and learn. And he knows how to admit when he is insufficiently informed about something. Many pols would have felt that it displayed weakness or a lack of preparation to acknowledge their ignorance of the issues discussed by the child support lady and the legislator near the end of the video. Indeed, it should be embarrassing for a champion of social justice to be unfamiliar with such a problem. But the sad truth is that many liberals, particularly the more financially secure white liberals, are indeed completely ignorant of this issue - that poverty creates a cycle wherein inability to pay petty fines or child support leads to prison, which leads to a criminal record that makes it harder to find work, which leads to further inability to pay, which leads back to prison.
- Poverty is a tool used by the power structure to delegitimize and criminalize poor people, people of color, and certain voting blocs. It's something that's been discussed here before - which is where I first encountered the idea myself, as a relatively sheltered white liberal. In the video, Bernie states that he first learned of the extent of this problem from conversations with Rev. Jackson, and he gets a further primer from the legislator that speaks near the end. The crowd seems to come alive as Bernie restates what he's been told and then says "and this is a major problem?" The room fills with a resounding, knowing "YES!"
- While this issue illustrates that racial injustice is at least partially linked to economic injustice (provision of health care and attentiveness to providing job opportunities could alleviate some of the excuses for sweeping poor black folks into the justice system just because they can't pay a parking ticket), and therefore seems to play INTO the paradigm of how to address these issues that Bernie is frequently accused of focusing on at the expense of a more explicit "racism must be fought head-on" strategy, Bernie was nonetheless unaware of the extent of this problem.
Hopefully this will make it into his platform as he continues his outreach. Decriminalizing poverty should be a major headline plank of any true social justice platform. Bernie's Racial Justice Platform was good, but it only brushed at the edges of this issue. While he addressed the over-criminalization of our society, there was no specific reference to the ways in which simple inability to pay the petty fines and fees of the state can suck people into a criminal record. Let's push Bernie to dig into this issue going forward.
What's more, let's hope this is the beginning of the end of the accusations that his campaign "doesn't care" about certain voters. Maybe he's been slow to realize that not everyone is going to be compelled to buy into his message without some additional outreach and message tailoring. But it's as clear as ever that his heart is right, his campaign is about real and immediate democracy, and he's a great choice for President.