The Democratic National Committee’s attempt to cozy up to the Black Lives Matter movement was rejected Sunday as the network pushed back against aligning itself with either major party.
After the Democratic National Committee passed a resolution Friday expressing solidarity with Black Lives Matter, the group issued a statement stressing that the DNC effort “in no way implies an endorsement of the DNC by the Black Lives Matter Network, nor was it done in consultation with us.”
“We do not now, nor have we ever, endorsed or affiliated with the Democratic Party, or with any party,” said the statement on the Black Lives Matter Facebook page. “The Democratic Party, like the Republican and all political parties, have historically attempted to control or contain Black people’s efforts to liberate ourselves. True change requires real struggle, and that struggle will be in the streets and led by the people, not by a political party.”
Black Lives Matter protesters have caused headaches for Democratic presidential primary candidates on the campaign trail, driving Sen. Bernard Sanders off the stage at an Aug. 8 rally in Seattle and grilling front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton after an Aug. 11 event in New Hampshire.
The DNC resolution states, “[T]he DNC joins with Americans across the country in affirming ’Black lives matter’ and the ’say her name’ efforts to make visible the pain of our fellow and sister Americans as they condemn extrajudicial killings of unarmed African American men, women and children,” according to MSNBC.
The Black Lives Matter statement said that the DNC resolution “won’t bring the changes we seek.”
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“Resolutions without concrete change are just business as usual. Promises are not policies,” the statement said. “We demand freedom for Black bodies, justice for Black lives, safety for Black communities, and rights for Black people. We demand action, not words, from those who purport to stand with us.”
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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