HRC's margin among AA voters was built on a slander campaign against a good man. [View all]

[Ken Burch]

Everyone has the right to vote for whoever they want.

The will of the voters must be recognized.

But the way everyone casts their votes should be based on the truth-the real record of a candidate's words and deeds.

And that was not what happened tonight.

There was never anything in the truth of Bernie Sanders' life or his record in politics that could possibly have justified the great lie that was spread about him: the LIE that Bernie cares less about institutional racism than about economic justice.

Bernie has fought against institutional racism throughout his life. Everyone on the Left is a committed campaigner against racism.

The only real failing he had was that, as a non-Establishment politician, he wasn't as good at schmoozing with the AA leadership.

There were no legislative betrayals...there were no sellouts on any piece of legislation he ever voted on or supported in the House or the Senate.

There were no occasions ever when Bernie pandered to white supremacism(as the Clintons did throughout the Nineties and, really, until she entered the Senate-at which time finally speaking out against racism no longer really mattered after all the previous betrayals).

And yes, Bernie shouts...but so what? HRC shouts too. So did MLK and Malcolm and every major figure in the freedom pantheon. He shouts at the oppressors...he is never shouting at POC. He is never attacking POC. He is just speaking with passion and emphasis.

The fight against racism must go on. We ALL support that fight, no matter which candidate we support. It should never have been used cynically by the least-progressive candidate against the most-progressive candidate. And there is no way that the anti-racist fight can possibly benefit from a good man, a decent man with nothing to apologize for, being made a figure of hatred and derision, feelings he did nothing to earn from anyone.

This result cannot possibly lead to any victories in the battle against institutional bigotry.