Still Ducking and Dodging? Hillary Clinton's Meeting With Black Lives Matter Protesters Raises More Questions
Play Softball With Hillary Will Weaken BLM's Street Cred
Why Are Black Lives Matter Protesters Afraid to Confront Clinton?
Black Lives Matter protesters were veritable lions when confronting Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders...but were meek lambs when talking with Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton. According to CNN, Clinton got to talk privately with BLM protesters in a separate room after her Tuesday event in New Hampshire. Conveniently, the media was absent from the talk itself.
Also conveniently, the BLM protesters were apparently isolated from Clinton during her event by the U.S. Secret Service, which routinely "seals" the building when Clinton enters. As the wife of former president Bill Clinton, Hillary enjoys much more security than do other presidential contenders, especially Democratic rivals Bernie Sanders and Martin O'Malley. BLM protesters referenced the Secret Service when explaining their lack of aggression at the event.
However, Clinton's armed guards aside, reporting on the talk between the BLM protesters and Clinton paints a picture of a far meeker BLM than the one encountered by Bernie Sanders. While Sanders had to deal with aggressive hecklers and stage-storming intruders, Clinton actually received muted praise from BLM activist Daunasia Yancey, who described the former Secretary of State as a "brilliant woman." Instead of demanding microphones and policy concessions, the BLM protesters in New Hampshire seemed to merely have "a couple of particular questions."
Why are Black Lives Matter protesters playing softball with Clinton? Despite their apparent anger at Bill Clinton's "tough on crime" reforms of the 1990s, which Hillary Clinton supported, the BLM appears meek and mild around the Clinton campaign. You would figure that, if BLM activists were serious about wanting criminal justice reform, they would fight harder to gain policy concessions from the well-funded Democratic frontrunner.
Instead, BLM protesters seem more intent on confronting Bernie Sanders...the one presidential candidate who was actually active in championing civil rights in the 1960s. Irony abounds. It's almost enough to make me wonder whether many BLM activists are secretly Clinton supporters on the campaign payroll.
After all, now Clinton can claim that she has also been "confronted" by Black Lives Matter protesters and forced to answer tough questions. Thus far, Clinton has suffered from allegations that she ducks and dodges tough questions and isolates herself from challenges and criticism. Was her New Hampshire meeting with BLM protesters a bit of political theater meant to give her more "tough question" street cred? Now Clinton can claim that, like Bernie Sanders and Martin O'Malley, she has survived being in the hot seat.
If the Black Lives Matter movement wants to maintain its own street cred, it must get tough on Hillary Clinton...and on Republican candidates as well. Incessantly targeting Bernie Sanders will hurt the movement's image and make it appear opportunistic and cowardly, focused on attacking the most open and accessible politician to get plenty of free press. If Hillary Clinton wants to boost her own street cred, she must be more willing to deal with protesters and critics without a phalanx of Secret Service agents.
