Is blm just obsessed with stopping Bernie? (were the folks who took the mic blm at all?)

[Ken Burch]

I hope those folks turn out to be paid disrupters. It would make no sense for them to do this when Bernie has actually put all their criticisms to rest and is now addressing everything blm cares about).

They know nobody's more anti-racist and anti-police violence than Bernie Sanders.

They know Bernie backs the blm agenda unequivocally, while the other candidates are wishy-washy on it.

They know nothing would be better for the anti-racist cause if Bernie wasn't in the race.

They know the Sanders campaign would have gladly let them have the moment of silence if they'd just approached the organizers before the rally.

[JI7]

1. someone is obsessed

But it's blm

[Ken Burch]

2. Not sure what you meant by that.

You would agree there was no reason for Bernie to be prevented from speaking, right? That there's no longer any reason for BLM to treat Bernie like he's worse than any other Dem candidate on race?

HRC never has a moment of silence for victims of police violence at any of her events. Neither does O'Malley and neither would Biden.

(on edit) were you saying that they put the acronym in lower case? didn't know that. Will correct.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

3. I think the head of BLM should explain why

why Bernie of all people

[Skittles]

4. they're making fools of themselves

[starroute]

5. The women's names are Marissa Johnson and Mara Jacqueline Willaford

They are co-founders of the Seattle chapter of BLM, and the impression I get from the two items below is that they're determined to take on what they see as liberal hypocrisy by targeting and shutting down potential white sympathizers. It seems like a misguided strategy -- but it goes back to last year and is unlikely to be any kind of covert pro-Hillary operation.

Johnson is mentioned in an article from last winter about a march to shut down restaurants and boutiques in a generally artsy, liberal neighborhood that had asked the Seattle police for extra protection against Somali gangs that had been engaged in theft and harassment.
http://seattleglobalist.com/2014/12/05/blacklivesmatter-capitol-hill-police-east-african-crime-profiling/31336

Here's something more recent from the Seattle BLM group which includes both women's names and says, "Since last summer we have been leading, organizing, and creating a movement of resistance against the endless painful moments that our community continues to endure. We have been answering the call that all #BlackLivesMatter. We have been shutting things down, saying their names, and refusing to allow business as usual in order to expose the dangerous consequences of state violence. Now that #BlackSpring is coming to a close it is time to come together as a network and plan our next steps, establish our infrastructure and expectations, care for each other, and renew our strength through radical Black love."
http://www.youcaring.com/black-lives-matter-seattle-360828

[Ken Burch]

6. How do you shut down "liberal hypocrisy" by driving away white supporters?

Malcolm had given up on separatism by 1965.

And even the Panthers weren't saying the didn't want white support...they were saying white supporters of the anti-racist cause should organize their own neighborhoods.

[starroute]

7. You don't -- but that's what they seem to have in mind

There may be a kind of purism there, a fear of being coopted. I can only observe these things from a distance, but it reminds me of the ambivalence that some feminists display over accepting transgender women.

The point I was really trying to make, though, is that there's no reason to conclude these people are secretly working for Hillary. They have their own motivations and their own standards of what is effective action.

[starroute]

10. Here's another Marissa Johnson story

From last November:

http://www.king5.com/story/news/local/2014/11/28/black-friday-turns-to-protests/19631329/

SEATTLE -- Black Friday turned into a day of protests at malls across the country after a grand jury decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson earlier this week.

Protesters in a St. Louis mall blocked shoppers and forced some stores to close. In Seattle, demonstrators forced Westlake Mall to close early on the busiest shopping day of the year and tried to disrupt the city's traditional tree lighting ceremony. . . .

Crowds of demonstrators marched in, past the holiday decorations and Black Friday shoppers, taking over escalators and eventually the fourth floor of Pacific Place, yelling down into the courtyard. Protesters at one point staged a "die-in," lying down on a floor inside the Westlake Center mall.

March leader Marissa Johnson explained: "America goes where their pocketbook goes, so today we're blocking Black Friday. We want you to be uncomfortable shopping."

[bigtree]

8. so, it turns out they were not 'paid disruptors' at all

...but committed activists for their cause.

They evidently don't believe Bernie 'backs the blm agenda unequivocally' or believe 'the other candidates are wishy-washy on it.'

They don't appear to 'know' what you assume they should.

[Ken Burch]

9. blm has apologized for the disruption. Bernie and his supporters back the blm cause, too.

He doesn't have to talk about that issue and nothing else to prove that. And he backs police reform.

Bernie has spoken out against police violence over and over...your candidate proved he doesn't get it with his "all lives matter response".

Only rich white people benefit from Bernie being attacked. And none of the other candidates in the Democratic race have ever had a better actual record on fighting racism than he does, in any of the offices they held.