Joe Biden stays silent over the BLM founder’s meeting request as the group pressures him to appoint a black woman to Kamala Harris’ vacated Senate seat.
The BLM movement’s founder, Patrisse Cullors, asked for a sit down with Joe Biden to discuss the BLM “expectations” after Cullors stated that the election was “won by Black people.”
“We want something for our vote.”
The disrespect continues: Joe Biden Leaves BLM on read, no response to proposed meeting with #BlackLivesMatter founder https://t.co/V8JAkcs8Tc via @MailOnline
— Project Nandi's GoFundMe needs funding (@blacktechguru) November 20, 2020
The group has also started a petition calling for either Barbara Lee or Karen Bass to be appointed in the seat that Harr’s will vacate, guaranteeing that a black woman will be sitting in the Senate until at least 2022 when Kamala Harris’ term expires.
In the said petition, the BLM group stated that appointing a Black woman in the Senate is “non-negotiable” and that it “must be done.” However, Cullors noted that Biden had not yet responded to this open letter.
Last Thursday, Fox News tried to reach out to Joe Biden’s camp to ask for comments about the meeting request. However, the Biden camp stayed silent, and nobody stepped forward to give a statement.
In relation to this, Cullors stated, “I really hope my first fight with this administration isn’t whether they will meet with us.”
She continued by saying, “we know that the Black Lives Matter Global Network and all the Black-led organizations around the country really helped win this election and we hope that they sit down with the leadership that was dedicated to getting them in office.”
Cullors added that the BLM would be there to hold the Biden-Harris administration responsible and work with the upcoming administration in dismantling a system that she said, “for too long hasn’t worked for the Black community.”
Kamala Harris is due to vacate her California Senate seat in January. Governor Gavin Newsom will have the sole power to appoint a replacement who will be serving till 2022.
In addition to the non-negotiable appointment of a Black woman in the Senate, Cullors stated that she wanted Joe Biden to quickly pass the Breathe Act, which will remove the funding for police services and instead shift it to enhancing the “self-determination of black communities,” allocate new money for equitable communities, and as well as to “divest resource from policing.”
Cullors added, “We have a real opportunity to change lives with the first piece of federal legislation written by and directly for our community.”
In California, several groups are lobbying over who should take the seat Kamala Harris will vacate. And California Governor Newsom has the sole authority to choose who should be the next senator. This led the California Governor to joke that he has heard from almost everyone in the state at this point.
Other than the BLM candidates, other candidates also have the backing of other traditionally marginalized communities. For instance, the Latino Victory Fund is backing Secretary of State Alex Padilla, who, if ever appointed, will be the state’s first Hispanic senator. He is a Newsom confidant many see as a leading contender.
The Indian American Impact Fund has also endorsed Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna for the seat, the son of Indian Immigrants, a notable member of the party’s progressive wing.
Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis is another contender. He served as an ambassador to Hungary during the Obama administration and is known as a prolific fundraiser.
