Talk about a great way to support your allies in issues of income and social inequality. I'm sure President Trump will really have your best interests in mind! BRAVO!!!!!

And BTW here's a quote to answer the smug assertion Sanders isn't dealing with inequality. It's from Martin Luther King "Now our struggle is for genuine equality, which means economic equality. For we know now that it isn’t enough to integrate lunch counters. What does it profit a man to be able to eat at an integrated lunch counter if he doesn’t have enough money to buy a hamburger?"

Sanders is dealing with a huge part of the problem of inequality. Sad some choose to ignore that fact.

The self-styled "leaders" of the local BLM movement have proven themselves to be nothing more than juvenile, self-centered political neophytes, with the intellectual capacity of an overflowing colostomy bag.
There is such a thing as tactics, Mara and Marissa. You would do well to study them, and what effective tactics look like. There are also things called "allies" and "enemies". Again, you two would do well to learn how to identify and differentiate between the two, after you grow up and learn how to read.
One really has to conclude that these two had the express purpose of delegitimizing the BLM movement. Well, mission accomplished, girls.

Black lives matter. Free speech apparently doesn't.

Marrisa Johnson:

Seattle, where "white supremacist liberalism" prevails

It's like a game of Mad Libs!

@7 let's not forget that while Bernie Sanders marched with Martin Luther King Hillary Clinton was working on getting Barry Goldwater elected President.

But I'm sure these folks will disrupt the rally Hillary Clinton throws in Seattle....right? LOL!! I think we know they will be no where to be found.

The booing of the crowd and the above comments show why this disruption was necessary. If your empathy for black people being slaughtered in the streets is contingent on a politician not being interrupted, you were never an ally to begin with. This is what activism is. It's rude, relentless, and unapologetic. A Bernie Sanders rally is as much a nexus of white privilege as a Whole Foods. White liberal fantasies of our own righteousness are EXACTLY what needs disrupting.

What a bummer. What terrible tactics. They certainly lost me as a supporter of the movement. Don't get me wrong, I support the underlying ideas, but poor execution people. All you have done is piss on potential allies.

Had they not interrupted this rally, no one would have heard their message, Sanders can get national media attention when ever he wants

You should all read their press release BLM put out today, the points they make about Murray are right on.

Sanders fumbled badly with BLM at Netroots, and has yet to apologize.

Sanders needs to reach out to BLM and mend fences

I was there today. This was a scene straight out of 1960's factionalism. We will never defeat the Right-Wing because we continue to fight amongst ourselves. Targeting Bernie Sanders is ridiculous, and he's only being targeted because his public appearances are "accessible". Try pulling this kind of shit off at a Hillary Clinton event. You'd be tasked and in Guantanamo before you knew what hit you.

Embarrassing

These protesters are simply delusional. They have no clue what they're doing, except that they want to make a lot of noise and be disruptive. They have no plan for advancing their movement, they're too busy getting their jollies by "fighting the power" (the "power" being a democratic socialist who marched with MLK).

The Facebook post is completely nonsensical. Refusing to let someone speak doesn't "honor Black lives." Shouting down one of your supporters doesn't show "radical love" for your Black brothers and sisters. They weren't putting their "lives and bodies on the line" for anything (what did they think the police were going to shoot them or Bernie was going to haul off and punch one of them?!).

I'm not even a Bernie Sanders fan and even I can tell that they're targeting the wrong person. Sanders fairly clearly agrees with BLM on pretty much every substantive point as he has said repeatedly in speeches after the Netroots Nation hecklers. This is another sad case of misguided leftist "activists" lashing out at whoever happens to be close by, which unfortunately often happens to be an ally.

Moreover, this is representative of the misguided nature of activism in many circles theses days. Where doing something, anything is considered more important than focusing on the goals of the movement. Where the number of people you offend is deemed more important than the number of people you help. It's the kind of activism where the person who shouts the loudest and causes the biggest ruckus is cheered on by the fawning masses, while the cause slowly dies.

OKAY !!!! WE FUCKING GET IT
BLACK LIVES MATTER
Now shut up so I can hear the guy speak
Damn it.

@11 Nobody heard their message, all everyone is talking about is the fact that they interrupted Bernie Sanders. Regardless of your politics, "Just do something to get attention" is not a good strategy.

The fact that they outright labeled Bernie as part of the problem when he himself is Jewish and undoubtedly faced the nastiness of our society because of it is beyond ridiculous. I'm not stating that anti-Semitic behavior is the same as the racism we see today. But it IS an issue. A very big one. And while I do think that he ought to say something in regards to the issues prior to this, it still stands to reason that the women in question labeled him without any regard to who he actually is. That in and of itself is a blanket of ignorance I cannot condone.

aw, jeez.

poorly handled, by nearly all. how seattle, how embarrassing. now "white supremacist liberalism" is going to become a republican meme, so... thanks for that.

& btw, "young ladies" is condescending and sexist.

BLM movement is strange and troubling. First it seems to criticize everyone but the current class of of black neoliberal misleadership that the civil right generation was hijacked by when old party power got involved in finding malleable business minded people to sell capitalist values of exploitation to the black community... you too can get rich seemed to be the message.

Now enter the BLM leaders, demanding to "be heard and accepted" by the leadership and it just seems to be a play to get a piece of the pie. No doubt the core message of BLM is an important one. No doubt it must be heard. I think a lot of people are honestly trying to address a crisis which requires disruption. But what is the core of BLM after. They aren't biting Hillary's hand.. Bruce Dixon spoke to this on Black Agenda Report, you can listen or read the transcript here:
http://www.blackagendareport.com/wheres-…

Also Doug Henwood had Adolph Reed on Behind the News with an interesting commentary about the BLM participation at the Left Forum in NYC a couple months back
http://johnhalle.com/outragesandinterlud…

I found Reed's comments verging on a little deaf at times but I think he's grappling with a confrontation that leftist, especially hard leftist that would support candidates like Sanders, a little hard to understand why the belligerence. The hard left has been critical of Obama and his lack of race relations.... WHY would you come after people that are willing to attack black leadership for not holding cops and America accountable??

Perhaps Bernie is just seen as another Dem... much more accessible when he's not hiding behind garden gates in mansions like Hillary i guess? Or is a vocal and brave contingent just not familiar with who is really on their side?

Hey activism is supposed to be rude, you storm a stage, block a road, occupy a bridge, what ever it takes.

"Divida et Impera"

While certainly it's disappointing to Sanders supporters...this incident seems to have unleashed a torrent of racism that is apparently thinly veiled in the Sander's crowd.

@11 - if you're asserting that no one at a Bernie Sanders rally has heard the message of BLM, and that they aren't supporters of the same, then you are a goddamn idiot.

At least one of the protesters is a member of Outside Agitators 206, they didn't 'interrupt' Bernie, they didn't let him speak at all.

I'm so disgusted by the white liberal reaction to this. I work downtown and all I heard from 3 to 5 were cranky blue hairs furious about the uppity protesters ruining their fun afternoon rally with Bernie. I keep writing and deleting words to try to articulate the sense of despair I feel as a young white progressive watching my parents generation of liberals just completely lose touch with reality on this issue. People are fucking dying in the streets an they're more concerned about missing a speech.

This action was absurd. Bernie Sanders is a U. S. Senator and running for POTUS. Imagine if that was Obama instead of Sanders and this was 08'? That action was entirely disruptive and clearly, an unnecessary moment for the #Blacklivesmatter movement.

It's a damned shame.

@23, ah yes the ever credible "I disagree with you therefore you are racist or homophobic or sexist or anti-Semitic" argument. I works when facts don't pan out your way.

Classless idiots. If you want respect, acting like a 4 year old brat isn't going to accomplish it.

#9, one might go so far as to say that persuasion of potential allies is also a key component of activism. Who was persuaded today exactly? Which new alliances were made? Sure looks like yet another case of the left shooting itself in the ass. We'll never win because that's the least of our priorities. Here's an example of so owning our oppression that we ourselves work overtime to maintain it in perpetuity. The feudal lords rest easy tonite.

@9 Cute. But the only person making any contingencies is the fantasy straw man liberal in your head.

The fact that you can't grasp the subtle complexities of issues, or cause and effect doesn't make the rest of us dumb. But you might be.

But I'm sure you'll counter that the crowd of liberals there, who likely helped elect our first black president, have secretly been running our hands with glee as he and our first black attorney general haven't done so much about police violence. But that's probably more because you are addicted to feeling butthurt, than actual reality. I think you have a case of Not Too Bright Privilege.

With friends like these....

@26
They aren't out of touch. The "protest speech" was out of touch. Watching it was like taking a graduate level course titled "How to Lose an Audience in 5 Minutes or Less".

It would not have been difficult for them to get their voices heard, presented themselves as a positive force, gathered more support, and walked off stage to wild cheers. They chose instead to insult the audience, make behavioral demands, insult again, demand again, insult once more, then declare that the whole reason everyone showed up would not be happening because we were all racists or something. If your rhetorical strategy is to alternate between insults, demands, and disappointment.... well... you aren't going to win friends and influence people.

I really hope that those folks aren't actually affiliated with BLM.

Because yeah, way left liberal Dems are obviously the core of the problem of cops killing black people.

BLM-WA has denied these individuals are members of any known BLM group, and a new local BLM FB page has been created in the past 48 hours.

This was not a BLM action. To assuage any conspiracy theories, this was still likely a group of African American protesters, but their only affiliation with BLM is in their own minds. That would make this a false flag operation, a covert operation designed to deceive in such a way that the operation appears as though it is being carried out by a group other than the one that actually planned and executed it.

Blaming BLM for the actions of uninvolved third parties seems beneath Seattle and Slog posters.

I don't have any issues with them interrupting and demanding the mic. It's pretty kickass I think, and it's right that activism should be disruptive. But.... I don't know. I watched the video and... he was going to let them speak. So... why continue to argue/fight after that? Demand the mic, say what you want to say, have the moment of silence and then... mission accomplished? You still get the media coverage for disrupting, you get to say what you want to say, Sen. Sanders still gets to speak, and everyone probably leaves feeling pretty positively about BLM. I guess I feel like you can be disruptive without being an asshole to people, and I'm not sure they accomplished that...

@26 Yes, I was disgusted to hear the chant of all lives matter. All lives aren't being gunned down equally by cops..

I'm not a particularly Bernie man but I don't think you can judge him on his blue hair supporters. He had the sense to refuse the mic when the whole thing was getting particularly messed up. He's in a bad spot right now.

You know this liberal civil war video just blew FOX news orgasm meter.

What does blue hair mean? Does it mean young white progressives who dye their hair blue or does it mean older white people, referring to the old fashioned "bluing" they put in their hair to take away the yellowy look that grey can develop? If it's the latter, you're engaging in ageist insults and generalizing about an entire and very large group of people. That's wrong, whether it's done in regard to race, religion, or age.

Oh please. It would only be "kickass" if they had done it at a Republican candidate appearance, which they would never ever do. But they know that they can depend on good old white supremacist liberals to meekly let them have their tantrum and then feel bad about it.

Oh well. Sanders has as much chance of moving on to be the nominee as I do, so I guess their street theatre will at least make them feel good about themselves.

What a total dick move. You don't fuck with your allies.

@40, I'm not color blind and i think class informs your positions. All lives matter came from a group of older people who probably weren't informed enough how that has white washing potential or, they don't care and are just "color blind" liberals that tolerate white supremacists rhetoric.

I've hear enough white retiree opinions from my family and friends to know that they tend to think no one worked harder or deserves more than them. And generalizing about white people isn't racist because you can't hurt someone with your opinion when they have all the power.

@40 it means fuck you and also shut the fuck up and ALSO you're not fucking cute or funny.

What a bunch of idiots. So sad that this happened. C'mon Seattle, get smart and look at the bigger picture. What a complete asshat move by these ignorant protestors.

Does anybody know if I can get an official “Bernie” t-shirt with “Bernie” written in the style of the “Journey” logo across the chest?

Way to promote your cause.

Idiots.

This was the perfect event to target. BLM is getting HUGE coverage.

Do white supremacist liberals recycle sustainable wooden crosses while wearing fair trade, unbleached, organic cotton hoods?

Go ahead and sabotage Bernie but get ready for Hillary.

@26 It's possible to be super duper concerned about "people dying in the streets" and still want to watch Bernie Sanders give a speech about entitlement programs.

#49 is asking the important questions.

If the purported BLM protesters had shown up at a Republican event they would have been called thugs, pepper-sprayed and tossed out to the acclaim of those gathered. Targeting Sanders is the old game of trying to exploit white liberal guilt for personal advancement. This sort of self-centered grandstanding is why there is no meaningful left in the US.

And why assume these two women represent anyone other than themselves?

@53, "purported" is correct. The Stranger takes the protestors at their word, and identifies them as being from BLM and having the authentic Facebook page, even though that Facebook page is only 18 hours old. It'd be nice if Stranger reporters could actually do some journalism instead of being lapdogs.

Bernie not standing up to express his own voice tells me he is not ready to be the democratic nominee. I'm sticking w hill.

@42
You got me thinking. I mostly hang out with friends and people I generally like, in other words, allies. We fuck with each other a lot. In fact I can't think of many enemies I even have, possibly on the internet, but that's a little too meta.

@56
Its not bernie's job to be a bouncer. The event coordinators and staff should have handled this much better.

@56 I think Bernie handled himself ok today. Better than honking some clap trap about free speech like Obama and other dems do as protesters are dragged from the room.

To retort that "All Lives Matter" is to miss the point. The prevailing message in the West seems to be, to paraphrase Orwell, that "All lives matter, but White lives matter more than others."

And seriously, who cares if it interrupted the speech of a presidential hopeful, Social Democrat or not? How is it okay to protest arctic drilling by aggressive means but not institutionalized racism? Is there a proper place and time to protest when doing so means risking not having your message take hold? Will voting in the Social Democrat really do anything to curb issues of entrenched economic inequality or racism so long as we continue to tacitly accept the tenets of Capitalism? Let's face it, property ownership and liberalized markets coupled with a booming population are not the friends of social or environmental harmony.

I know that thinking about this is hard, and I gather many of your are not especially occupied with thinking critically about social issues like racism and the ways in which it is manifested. Lucky for you, dear commenters, there are actually people who get paid to think profoundly about these issues. A good example is Judith Butler, a professor at UC, Berkeley who addresses the very kinds of circumstances evidenced at the Bernie Sanders rally in a NYT Q&A from January of this year:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/201…

"J.B.: ...The practices of public mourning and political demonstration converge: when lives are considered ungrievable, to grieve them openly is protest. So when people assemble in the street, arrive at rallies or vigils, demonstrate with the aim of opposing this form of racist violence, they are “speaking back” to this mode of address, insisting on what should be obvious but is not, namely, that these lost lives are unacceptable losses.

On the one hand, there is a message, “Black Lives Matter,” which always risks being misheard (“What? Only black lives matter?”) or not heard at all (“these are just people who will protest anything”). On the other hand, the assembly, even without words, enacts the message in its own way. For it is often in public spaces where such violence takes place, so reclaiming public space to oppose both racism and violence is an act that reverberates throughout the public sphere through various media.

G.Y.: I’ve heard that some white people have held signs that read “All Lives Matter.”

J.B.: When some people rejoin with “All Lives Matter” they misunderstand the problem, but not because their message is untrue. It is true that all lives matter, but it is equally true that not all lives are understood to matter which is precisely why it is most important to name the lives that have not mattered, and are struggling to matter in the way they deserve.

Claiming that “all lives matter” does not immediately mark or enable black lives only because they have not been fully recognized as having lives that matter. I do not mean this as an obscure riddle. I mean only to say that we cannot have a race-blind approach to the questions: which lives matter? Or, which lives are worth valuing? If we jump too quickly to the universal formulation, “all lives matter,” then we miss the fact that black people have not yet been included in the idea of “all lives.” That said, it is true that all lives matter (we can then debate about when life begins or ends). But to make that universal formulation concrete, to make that into a living formulation, one that truly extends to all people, we have to foreground those lives that are not mattering now, to mark that exclusion, and militate against it. Achieving that universal, “all lives matter,” is a struggle, and that is part of what we are seeing on the streets. For on the streets we see a complex set of solidarities across color lines that seek to show what a concrete and living sense of bodies that matter can be."

Bernie avoided the clear trap by not accepting the mike after it had been ripped out of the hands of an African American woman.

I'm not sure Hillary or any of the Republican candidates would have been so wily.

jerks.

@9:

Yeah, if you're disappointed in not hearing from a politician and perturbed at instead hearing from two justifiably angry black women putting said politician on-the-spot for giving what they see as mere lip-service to issues of importance to them and to their community, then perhaps your sense of priorities are a little misplaced. We all know Sanders was on-board with the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's, but this isn't about stances he took 50 years ago; it's about how he's addressing these issues today. And I can imagine that from these women's perspective his reticence to speak directly to the topic (and no, limiting one's rhetoric to purely economic issues doesn't cut it), to address the problem of institutional and cultural racism head-on, to acknowledge that racism is about far more than economics, is simply further evidence of how little he seems willing to engage with minority voters in general. I mean, all you have to do to get where they're coming from is to look at the audience at a typical Sanders rally: probably 95% white.

If he wants more credibility with minority voters (with whom he's not exactly a household name), he HAS to talk about the issues that affect them; and while economic issues are certainly a part of that, it's not the only thing, and my guess would be not the most important thing.

Who cares how old the women's Facebook page is?

The protestors had a legitimate gripe. All this excitement about Bernie was overshadowing the anniversary of Mike Brown's death. White liberals are pumped about Bernie and don't have time for that BLM nonsense because WE HAVE A POLITICAL REVOLUTION TO WIN!!!

After the hubbub, Bernie escaped to an all-white crowd at the Comet where he went into his usual stump: Income inequality, climate change, student debt, Citizen's United (white people problems) before finally saying a few words about police reform (for which he has no plan) and acknowledging Sandra Bland and Sam DuBose then transitioning into youth unemployment and raising money for his campaign. There really was nothing there for black folks, which is why there were no black folks there.

The only way the BLM movement will be successful is to continue to make white people uncomfortable about their privilege. In Seattle, white privilege runs deep, as was witnessed by the booing and hissing of an angry crowd. Bernie should have took the mic and loudly proclaimed "BLACK LIVES MATTER!" But Bernie looked very uncomfortable and got the hell out of there.

Jeb Bush recently dismissed the BLM movement as a "slogan" but it's not. Today was a reminder that it's not going away, no matter how uncomfortable it makes us feel.

@38 if stats matter to you, check this out - almost twice as many white Americans have been killed by cops this year as black Americans. Not proportional, of course, but not nothing - if all stats matter: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-in…

Too good to be true. Seattle is a fucking kindergarten.

The succeeded at getting attention and publicity. They also alienated a fair number of people. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.ph…

Ten dollars says they are paid to be there by the Hillary campaign. After all, ever notice they never target GOP candidates or Hillary, but only her ONE real rival? I am not a progressive and don't like Sanders myself, and don't have a dog in this fight, but I know bullshit when I smell it.

Something this report misses is the vitriol of the BLM protestors. I saw at one point (because I was behind the stage) Bernie Sanders go up to one of the protestors and begin talking with her. She was yelling in his face and it didn't look like a conversation. They BLM folks were so escalated it was near impossible for Sanders to have a conversation or interact with them. I think taking the mic at actions like these is ok - if not done in a way that completely rules out a productive conversation ending. Vitriol is not the solution.

The problems are on both sides- BLM chooses a very imperfect symbol (Mike Brown) and techniques and priviledged establishment liverals dont take action on the real issues BLM raises. And republitards revel in the shitshow.

@60. Great comment. Wish you woukd write for the Strangler

I think people can be aware of and supportive of the urgency of the Black Lives Matter movement and also want to hear Bernie Sanders speak. To decide that people getting irritated at the women for their misplaced and idiotic political move is evidence of the lack of support is pretty block headed.

As for the notion that activism is rude and inherently disruptive...then what is the point? If your goal is to inconvenience at the least and ideally anger, how does that "wake people up" to then support the cause? It doesn't. It never will. Continued belief that such things do accomplish change in attitude is intentional dumbfuckery. This particular group did more damage to their cause than anything--which is unfortunate since the issue of trigger happy policing is critically important.

Re my comment in 67: I posted too early.

I was trying to say that to many "moderate" racists likely had that term triggered for them. BLM was created in the midst of an ongoing, previously hidden and obscured, practice of bullying and killing of people with brown skin.

I think the anger and frustration is warranted, but put to better effect at GOP rallies. Actions like today's will only drive a further wedge between the righteously angry victims of our society's racism, and the "moderate" racists who would otherwise have supported the BLM cause out of embarrassment or shame. Every ally counts.

I'm impressed how this action won BLM so many more allies today!!! I means some folks are worried about being able to retire without starving but now? Screw that!!! We only care about ONE issue!!! Screw all other problems !!!

Marissa Johnson and Mara Willaford got guts.

Give em' that at least.

@64, it matters if they're actually with BLM or not, doesn't it? Or are you saying it doesn't matter if you misrepresent themselves or not?

I had thought there were people of color at the subsequent Sanders' events, but I guess those who said they attended were lying.

Yes, those women had a legitimate, important message. Yes, Bernie should do more to embrace the BLM movement, especially if he wants their votes. However, as we just saw with the HALA blow back - calling people racists for not siding with you only cauterizes them against you and shuts down potential lines of communication.

@75, I watched the video of his speech at the Comet and saw no people of color (with the exception of a sephardic jew or three.)

Here is a FB post by Nikkita Oliver:

News Flash. This just in!
Black folx are not monolithic.
So is it surprising there are at least three groups in Seattle claiming to be Black Lives Matter Seattle? Nah, it's not surprising.
Reality Check. There are more than two BLM founders in Seattle BUT that shit doesn't really matter. It's a movement not built on ego or founders but on the principal of liberty and equity for all black peoples. So you ain't gotta agree but you should respect the diversity of tactics. Do your part for black liberation in the way you feel purposed. This will serve the movement much better than your ego ever will.

#77, there wasn't three groups claiming to be BLM Seattle last week. One of those groups was less than 24 hours old. It seemed literally created for this protest, and nothing else.

Zleading with calling people white supremacists is liable to get you booed pretty much anywhere, anytime.
They had some points. And a really terrible communications strategy. Everyone was pissed.

@72, no, not better focused on the GOP. Better to confront the demons in the left where they have a chance at inclusion. If they did this at a GOP rally it would just be yelling at a wall.

If people are talking about the very complex relationship between white's in the left and black power and how to reconcile those two components and their sometime differing needs, maybe this did accomplish something. I think the vitriol could be applied a little more evenly but maybe people are targeting Sanders because they see something worth trying to engage? That's speculation but I might hope that it is in part true.

@80
Respectfully disagree. The protestors speaking at today's rally were not interested in inclusion. They could have easily altered the tone of their message and got the crowd on their side, but they were intentionally insulting and abusive. No one there was thinking about complex race relations in the leftist movement. The chatter was more like "What the actual crap?" and "This is so bad."

#78, I don't remember anyone checking the protesters BLM membership card when they disrupted brunch at the Comet or made the caroling kids cry.

Try asking yourself why you need these women to signal way ahead of time if they aren't going to stay in their lane.

Let BLM pay for their own rally, draw their own supporters, and hootenanny all they want. But the real fault lies with whoever organized this on Bernie's behalf. They needed to exert a lot more muscle to shut the BLM people down. An embarrassment for Seattle

@82, I'm not sure you're getting it. A group was formed less than 24 hours before Bernie Sanders came into an area, and was shut down less than 12 hours after this protest.
This isn't about what these women did or did not signal. This is about a group of people intentionally masquerading as a second group for a specific event, then disappearing into the ether. If these women were genuinely interested in social justice, they would not have become ghosts after the demonstration. They would have spoken to the press. They would have spoken out on FB. They would have done anything other than what they have done, which is nothing.
This protest simply does not look genuine. It looks cooked, half baked, and specifically targetted to this event and person.
It is about sketchy actions, not membership cards. These women look like spooks, not activists.

@84, "These women look like spooks?"

Really?

The Demon Left in Seattle, whom banned the term "brown bag lunch" because it's racist, needed to be confronted.

@85, they look more like spooks than legitimate protesters, yes. I'm not saying they are spooks, but they sure as heck aren't acting like protesters. Nobody in the region or BLM movement has ever heard of them. They don't have any known prior protest history. They sure as heck don't represent anybody but themselves.

BLM is a movement, People join that movement. They are then known by people within that movement. These two women aren't known by anyone in that movement at all. They didn't join any known BLM chapter (yes, the BLM movement has chapters).

What would you say these women seem like to you, given this information?

The left has a big tent, which is a good thing. We share the recognition that those who suffer do not always do so because of laziness or character defects and we call on all institutions in society, including the government, to improve the lives of others. Unfortunately, there are those who think we can't walk and chew gum at the same time. They believe their particular issue is the only one we should talk about. Did it occur to those who disrupted the event that we can support Black Lives Matter AND support strengthening Social Security? Their actions today were not helpful. We shoot ourselves in the foot time and again while the Faux News crowd passes the popcorn.

How to win friends and influence people...

Fail.

While I completely sympathize with BLM in general, why piss on the parade of the most progressive liberal running?

@81 I was there. It wasn't pleasant. The reaction to the disruption in the by some in the crowd (all lives matter, shut them up) was certainly more abhorrent to me than the actual protest. My reaction was that this is difficult and dear god Bernie, don't fuck this up like you did at net roots. Bernie handled himself fine. My feeling in the crowd was embarrassment for white people being so reactionary instead of listening.

I will grant you, the people that were on stage today didn't seem to want engagement. There was too much adrenaline in the confrontation. Let's stop focusing on the individuals, Bernie, organizers and whether protesters are card carrying members of BLM (who cares). Get past that and take a look at what this all means. What does the left have to take a hard look at (all lives matter, jeet chrize) and where is the opportunity to bridge between folks instead of getting more entrenched.

Bernie had an interview in the July 20 issue of The Nation. It was available digitally on July 2. So at least a month ago he was addressing incarceration and unemployment for African Americans. And in order to say this is just a recent development, you have to ignore his history. For years he's spoken out for civil rights, using his feet (marching) and his congressional vote. He's far from perfect, but it seems some people would rather complain first before actually reading a word about him.

@89 Bernie isnt a liberal, he's a socialist.

Per Bernstein, I think you know that this isn't just about attacking Bernie Sanders. This incident, most likely having nothing to do with BLM (except the protestors claimed they represented them), will also damage support for BLM. This protest was meant to divide the progressive community, and hurt both BLM and Bernie Sanders. And thanks to people like you, there's a good chance that will happen.

Oh, by the way, look at the photos from the Bernie Sanders event at Hec Ed tonight. Not your kind of people, of course, but plenty of people of color up front and center.

Someone should remind these women that their current President is black. They should disrupt Obama's speeches if they want their voices heard.

87 -- You know "spook" is a racial slur, right?

Good lord.

At this point I really can't blame any black person for being furious, or for feeling the need to scream and shut shit down. Maybe this is the way it has to happen.

@87
It is also shorthand for FBI infiltrators...

@93 In my more cynical moments I wonder if there aren't Hillary supporters stirring the turd online and off, urging the disruption of Sanders events. But this does no good so busy yourself with how to include and unite.

Sorry....@95

@96 CIA operatives... but let's not be dense here, I may not have read it that way but it was certainly bad taste to use it in this situation.

@95, I urge you to read the context. George Bush the first was a Spook, as in a covert operative. The actions of these two women, specifically their claims of leadership within the BLM movement despite nobody knowing who they were and their complete disappearance after their single biggest media success, speaks more towards a covert operation than it does honest protest.

@93, Were the people who interrupted Bernie at NetRoots BLM imposters as well?

Jesus, how tone deaf are you guys?

Bernie changed up his stump after NR to include BLM messaging but still falls back into addressing the race divide as being economic when it is much deeper (as witnessed by the reactions of the crowd today.) All these Bernie folks like him because he doesn't go along to get along and that he shakes things up. But when black youth do the same thing, they are chided for not sitting down and being quiet so the old white man with all the answers can speak.

And then we demand to see the "spooks'" identification. Sad.

#101, correlation does not imply causation. That's a classic logical fallacy there.

Nobody is demanding to see anybody's credentials. Stop trying to inject that Strawman into the conversation.

I am not going to condemn the BLM protesters, because they are right that their issue doesn't get enough talk from major candidates, I also think it is illogical and kind of stupid to say that their getting booed is indicative of how racist the crowd was. I assume most people were booing because they came to hear people talk about entitlement programs and the stage was being hijacked by protesters who wanted to talk about a totally different issue. It is like if you are at a climate change event and someone hijacks the stage to talk about immigration reform. You might boo them even if you support their message. So I don't think the people booing were necessarily wrong either. Or at least they have a point. You can't expect Bernie to use this event as a platform to talk about violence against black youth, because that isn't what he was invited to speak about. And they didn't give him a chance to anyways.

But to the point about "why are they targeting the major candidate most on their side?" I think that is actually pretty good strategy. They have already caused him to talk about it, and when he does talk about it, he will probably say the right thing. He is the person they are most likely to convince to make this a part of his platform. Although I don't know what that will do for his electability. His message of economic equality resonates with independents and moderates. Even old white ones. Especially old white ones. You could argue it would be better to take the wink and nod that he is on your side and not make him compromise his electability by making it a major focus. Much like Obama and the marriage equality movement. They seemingly purposefully didn't push him on the issue because they all knew he was on their side and would push thing that direction if elected. And making him focus on it too much during the campaign might just help get someone who is actually opposed elected. But that isn't really for me to say. Either tactic is logical and valid. And I can see why people in the BLM movement don't want to settle for a wink and a nod. People are literally dying in the meantime. I think even Bernie Sanders gets it. I think that is why he didn't want the mic back. He didn't want to be the person who toke their voice away, even at an event not directly related. It will be interesting to see how Bernie handles it. He has talked about it a little bit (the protesters were factually wrong about that), but it isn't yet a major piece of his campaign. But this might keep happening if it isn't.

#101, correlation does not imply causation.

Your continued attempts to inject a Strawman into the conversation via your single handed drive towards mentioning identification is stale and unhelpful to the conversation.