you know michelle alexander, the author of the new jim crow, she said african-americans have few reasons to vote for hillary clinton. why are they wrong? >> well, i mean i think that if you look at michelle alexander's piece and you say that african-americans have few reasons to vote for hillary clinton, i think that the first retort i would have is that they have even fewer reasons to vote for donald trump. but i also think if you're going to analyze hillary clinton and you're going to look at the crime bill, which michelle alexander did, if you're going to look atwell fair reform, which michelle alexander did, you have to look at things like the earned income tax credit. you have to look at things like the chips program. if we're going to hold secretary clinton for the '90s and rehash these cultural wars, we also have to make sure we have a thorough accounting and we have to take a look at everything that was accomplished during that time period, not just the blemishes on the record. >> i want to ask you about bernie sanders. do you think he is the better candidate for african-american

reading the new jim crow by michele alexander. >> i saw you read ta-nehisi coates, too. >> yeah.(laughter) michele alexander put that whole rear onera on blast but opened eyes for a lot of blacks who were not aware of a lot of the issues she brought up. >> i'm aware of that. so that book is a disruption in and of itself. it seems like the black intellectual class kind of started this movement or they have been the fuel under it. >> it's called stan wolf. you want to read these things and be a part of these thing stay woke. >> is "black lives matter" going to matter in the fall? >> i think it will matter always until we have equality. >> yeah, it should. plus, i think b.l.m. is an idea and, like, that's the most important part. i mean, that i have a slogan that's done as well as you know, like make america great again. is people, you know, just relax. not saying i like it as much. that's the problem. we need hats, young people. >> hats will be amazing. there are hats. i love hats. we don't have the hats. i love how matt comes and tells us about b.l.m. -- >> no, there are hats. the

>> well, i mean, i think if you look at michelle alexander's piece and you say that african-americans vote for hillary clinton, i think that the first retort i would have is that they have even fewer reasons to vote for donald trump. but i also think if you're going to analyze hillary clinton and look at the crime bill, which michelle alexander did, if you're going to look at what welfare reform, which she did, you have to looked at the earned income tax credit and chipped program. if we're going to hold senator clinton responsible for the 90s, we have to make sure we have a thorough accounting and look at everything accomplished during that time period, not just the blemishes on the record. >> angela, do you think that bernie sanders is the better candidate for african-americans? >> even if he was, don, i think the reality of it is is that the writing is on the wall. it's on the wall, it's on the floor, it's on the ceilings, it's everywhere. >> don't say it, don't say it. >> i'm just saying it's going to be very, very tough for bernie sanders to become the democratic nominee. i think

are you doing it with michelle alexander? yeah, so, i wanted to put together -- actually, i was talking to eve ensler about it, and we just came up with this idea of talking about just women and what we have to talk about in policies and politics. and so i wanted to round up particularly a couple of women who are definitely bernie supporters, but not necessarily everybody. but we're going to have michelle alexander, who wrote the new jim crowe tessa thompson, who was in , "dear white people" donna hylton, who was incarcerated for 23 years and can really talk to these issues and, like, give people information, because the one thing i keep finding is people who are supportive of the other candidates tend to do so with these really broad sort of ideas as to why. and as soon as you go, "well, why?" and you challenge them, they don't really have the facts to back it up. and i really feel like there's a possibility of especially undecided voters, giving them the information that they actually need, that a lot of the group mass medi

perry: i wish michelle alexander was here. the new jim crow is a great book. what i usually tell my students is that here is evidence that just as we use language today to convey the intensity of certain points. changing somebody's name, if you have seen roots, which i think is being remade by the history channel, kunta kinte contested the name and he was beaten into submission to accept the name. privately he still called himself that. there was a deliberate social conditioning to accept the names jefferson or johnson or these anglo names to forget the heritage. former slaves would talk about africa they would largely modeled the beliefs of their white counterparts. this was something that was ingrained in people from multiple generations. after marcus garvey and black nationalism we are now starting to get out of that and seeing the connections to africa. howard has influenced the very unique development of african americans the names do matter. even if it is an idea of reinventing yourself. >> what is your view on the new tax for the same outcome as far as

michelle alexander wrote a great piece why hillary does not deserve the black vote.s let america down on crime. , criminal justice reform. on the other hand, bill clinton appointed more black judges prior to any other president. it's a good news/bad news story. some of it is merited. but on the other hand, i don't like it. i don't like it when black voters are taken for granted. when you expect a coronation, you often find yourself in a dogfight. mark: when and if she sets up the nomination, it seems that president obama will be more aggressive speaking on her behalf. how big of a factor can he be, given that he has become a divisive figure? tavis: i don't know what his impact is going to be outside of the african-american community. the numbers are what they are. with the african-american vote, i have found it is not an automatic conclusion that one can draw. just because a black person says, vote for this person, that all black folk are going to do that. there is a huge difference. there is a huge difference between barack obama being on the ballot in campaigning f

. >>> it wasn't long, michelle alexander said i can't believe hillary clinton would be coasting into the primaries with her current margin of black support if most people knew how much damage they had done. . that was back in february. since then she's not given a television interview talk about her piece. i started off by asking if she's endorsing bernie sanders. >> i'm endorsing the political revolution. i'm reluctant to endorse any candidate in the current political system. i believe we need to think very serio seriously, particularly as folks of colors and progressives about building a new party or movement that can hold the democratic party accountable or provide a meaningful alternative. i kuld ncould not be more thrilled with the movement that is rising all over this country to support the creation of a real democracy in the united states. i think bernie sanders is absolutely right to call for a political revolution. we don't have real democracy today. our politicians are pretending to serve two masters. the people who elect them and the people who fund them. unfortunately, fo

michel alexand, the bestelling ahor of, he new jim ow: massncarceration in the age of colorblindness,essed the issue in a conversation with the drug policy alliance. >> in many ways, the imagery doesn't -- you know, here are white men poised to run big marijuana businesses, dreaming of cashing in big, big money, big businesses selling weed. after 40 years of impoverished black kids getting prison time selling weed, and their families and futures are destroyed now? white man are planning to get rich doing precisely the same thing. amy: the marijuana arrest research project reports that between 2001 and 2010, colorado police made 108,000 arrests for marijuana possession. african-americans were more than 10% of those arrests, but are less than 4% of colorado's residents. for more we're joined by wanda james, ceo of the denver-based cannabis dispensary simply pure. she is the african-american first woman in colorado to own a cannabis dispensary. she's also managing partner of cannabis global initiative. welcome to democracy now! it is great to have you with us. for people hearing you are

michelle alexander wrote a piece that she doesn't deserve the black vote.ntons let african-americans down. bill clinton went to the naacp to apologize. black judges, any president prior to him. for that matter, all presidents combined i think prior to him, clinton still appointed more black judges. it is a good news/bad news story. some of it is merited. on the other hand, i don't like it. i don't like it when black voters are taken for granted or ignored by the other party. i think she learned the last time around, when you expect a co co cornnation, you find yourself in a dogfight this time around. >> president obama will be more aggressive, speaking on her behalf. how big a factor do you think he can be in a general election, where his approval rating is, and he has become much to his annoyians a divisive figure? >> i don't know what his impact will be to the brilliant point you just made. the numbers are what they are. with the african-american vote, i have found that it's not an automatic conclusion that one can draw that just because a black person sa

perry: i wish michelle alexander was here. the new jim crow is a great book.hat i usually tell my students evidence thats becomes very difficult to deny that there are not historical linkages of race. to those who say slavery happened 150 years ago, it is an annoying excuse in which the narrative goes like this. forenslave these people multiple generation. a civil war has to be for. ught. people are freed and given a few rights for maybe a decade. due to action and its very shady presidential election in 1876 with rutherford b. hayes and jim crow is allowed to flourish. in the 1960's you have the civil rights movement the lots of andng rights act of people affirmative action policies. that largely benefit white women statistically. years everything is supposed to be ok. when we look at people fleeing the jim crow south to settle in urban centers in los angeles or chicago or new york all throughout the united states subprime loans are given to many of these individuals locking them into perpetual debt. the argument is that the racism now is much more subtle. wh

. >> good afternoon directors i'm michelle alexander i'm the president of the board of walk sf on behalff the walk sf i'm here to talk about the watering down the el terryville it is a high injury corridor over half of the pedestrians hit on 2013 were on and off the terryville train of the 24 people hit awhile getting on and off 6 were teenagers or 2 were 14 years old and ta proposed adrc boarding island at all stops walk sf stronger supports this proposal none should have to step off a train into boarding traffic the boarding islands are under attack by the parking relocation that will happen when the island are adam feel fortunate all spots will be replaced within one block of taraval unfortunately, the push back is so strong the original proposal is water down now part of a pilot instead of the boarding islands will have paint next to the train that is something like the transit boarding area that paint will not keep pedestrians save safety we shouldn't compromise open we urge you to add do boarding idles added altering value stops and make the safety improvements before another life

michelle. [ laughter ] >> larry: mr. president, i've had call-waiting since the '80s. >> wow, get a load of alexander graham bell!hter ] well, how about this? my new phone also has a feature called star 69. [ laughter ] it lets me call back anyone who called me. it's space-aged. >> larry: mr. president, this outdated phone system is emblematic of what's wrong with washington. don't you think? listen, i actually need to get back to the show. but it was really nice talking to you. >> oh, okay. bye. [ laughter ] [ cheers and applause ] >> larry: probably should have hung up. it was very nice of him. he's very excited about his phone so that's good. so have you people heard about this panama papers story? it's amazing. it's the biggest data leak in history. a number of foreign leaders had billions they took from their people, which they kept in offshore accounts -- [ phone rings ] hold on. hello? >> larry, it's president barack obama. [ laughter ] we spoke on the phone earlier. >> larry: yeah, yeah, yeah i know. >> i'm calling you from the truman balcony! >> larry: oh, great, great. no, you don't understand. this pla