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Sanders Blasts US Mass Incarceration as 'International Embarrassment'
In Chicago appearances, Sanders also distances himself from embattled Mayor Rahm Emanuel
Dec 24, 2015
In a speech that included an overt jab at embattled Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Wednesday, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders decried the U.S. incarceration rate as an "international embarrassment" and said he considers "reforming our broken criminal justice system one of the most important things that a president of the United States can do."
During his quick stop on Chicago's west side, Sanders outlined his plan for criminal justice reform. This platform includes ending for-profit prisons, removing marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances, eliminating the death penalty, and ending mandatory minimum sentencing.
He described the disproportionately high rate of incarceration for black males and the criminalization of school-aged black Americans a "tragedy."
"What a destruction of an entire generation," Sanders said to a room of supporters at the Village Leadership Academy. He was joined on stage by high-profile progressive activists Cornel West, Jim Hightower, Mike Render (aka Killer Mike), and Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream.
He also called for "police departments to look like their community, not like occupying forces." Police accountability is a hot-button issue across the country and perhaps especially in Chicago right now, where Emanuel and other top city officials have been under fire for their mishandling of the police-shooting death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald along with broader systemic racial and socioeconomic issues.
When a reporter at the event asked about Emanuel, Sanders responded: "If the question is do I want or need Rahm Emanuel's support for president, with all due respect for the mayor, no, I don't."
Emanuel is a former senior adviser to Sanders' rival, Hillary Clinton, and the White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama. On Christmas Eve, a march and rally calling for his resignation, along with that of Cook County State Attorney Anita Alvarez, are planned.
According to CBS Chicago, Sanders met earlier in the day at a private, invite-only event with leaders in the local Black and Latino communities, including Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, a member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners who lost to Emanuel in a runoff for Chicago mayor in April.
Watch below:
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chicagojim hightowerdeath penaltymass incarcerationcivil rightsillinoiselection 2016prisonsbernie sandersrahm emanuelcornel westhillary clintoncriminal justice systembarack obama
In a speech that included an overt jab at embattled Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Wednesday, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders decried the U.S. incarceration rate as an "international embarrassment" and said he considers "reforming our broken criminal justice system one of the most important things that a president of the United States can do."
During his quick stop on Chicago's west side, Sanders outlined his plan for criminal justice reform. This platform includes ending for-profit prisons, removing marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances, eliminating the death penalty, and ending mandatory minimum sentencing.
He described the disproportionately high rate of incarceration for black males and the criminalization of school-aged black Americans a "tragedy."
"What a destruction of an entire generation," Sanders said to a room of supporters at the Village Leadership Academy. He was joined on stage by high-profile progressive activists Cornel West, Jim Hightower, Mike Render (aka Killer Mike), and Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream.
He also called for "police departments to look like their community, not like occupying forces." Police accountability is a hot-button issue across the country and perhaps especially in Chicago right now, where Emanuel and other top city officials have been under fire for their mishandling of the police-shooting death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald along with broader systemic racial and socioeconomic issues.
When a reporter at the event asked about Emanuel, Sanders responded: "If the question is do I want or need Rahm Emanuel's support for president, with all due respect for the mayor, no, I don't."
Emanuel is a former senior adviser to Sanders' rival, Hillary Clinton, and the White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama. On Christmas Eve, a march and rally calling for his resignation, along with that of Cook County State Attorney Anita Alvarez, are planned.
According to CBS Chicago, Sanders met earlier in the day at a private, invite-only event with leaders in the local Black and Latino communities, including Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, a member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners who lost to Emanuel in a runoff for Chicago mayor in April.
Watch below:
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
In a speech that included an overt jab at embattled Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Wednesday, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders decried the U.S. incarceration rate as an "international embarrassment" and said he considers "reforming our broken criminal justice system one of the most important things that a president of the United States can do."
During his quick stop on Chicago's west side, Sanders outlined his plan for criminal justice reform. This platform includes ending for-profit prisons, removing marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances, eliminating the death penalty, and ending mandatory minimum sentencing.
He described the disproportionately high rate of incarceration for black males and the criminalization of school-aged black Americans a "tragedy."
"What a destruction of an entire generation," Sanders said to a room of supporters at the Village Leadership Academy. He was joined on stage by high-profile progressive activists Cornel West, Jim Hightower, Mike Render (aka Killer Mike), and Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream.
He also called for "police departments to look like their community, not like occupying forces." Police accountability is a hot-button issue across the country and perhaps especially in Chicago right now, where Emanuel and other top city officials have been under fire for their mishandling of the police-shooting death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald along with broader systemic racial and socioeconomic issues.
When a reporter at the event asked about Emanuel, Sanders responded: "If the question is do I want or need Rahm Emanuel's support for president, with all due respect for the mayor, no, I don't."
Emanuel is a former senior adviser to Sanders' rival, Hillary Clinton, and the White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama. On Christmas Eve, a march and rally calling for his resignation, along with that of Cook County State Attorney Anita Alvarez, are planned.
According to CBS Chicago, Sanders met earlier in the day at a private, invite-only event with leaders in the local Black and Latino communities, including Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, a member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners who lost to Emanuel in a runoff for Chicago mayor in April.
Watch below:
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