Hillary Clinton’s ‘All Lives Matter’ Remark Stirs Backlash

[philosslayer]

Hillary Rodham Clinton is facing backlash for saying that “all lives matter” in an African-American church in Missouri on Tuesday, offending some who feel that she is missing the point of the “black lives matter” mantra.

Mrs. Clinton’s remarks at Christ the King United Church of Christ in Florissant, Mo. — only a few miles north of Ferguson, where a black teenager was shot by a white police officer last August — came during a broader discussion of civil rights in America. She was talking about how a disproportionate number of young people of color are out of school and out of work and, explaining that everyone needs a “chance and a champion,” she recalled how her mother was abandoned as a teenager and went on to work as a maid.

“What kept you going?” Mrs. Clinton remembered asking her mother. “Her answer was very simple. Kindness along the way from someone who believed she mattered. All lives matter.”

The remark caused a stir on social media, with some African-Americans on Twitter suggesting that Mrs. Clinton had lost their votes.

http://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/06/24/hillary-clintons-all-lives-matter-remark-stirs-backlash/


I love Secretary Clinton, but she's going to have to be more careful with her wording. This sort of thing however is best gotten out of the way early in the campaign.

[SaranchaIsWaiting]

1. I was shocked at first, but now I think she did it on purpose. It wasn't a mistake.

It is very similar to her '08 --hard working Americans, white Americans, whistle.-- as someone in another thread said, she said this to her Republican side possibles, the ones that follow the AllLivesMatter of GlennBeck, the ones that will make that nice purple place for us all under the leadership of guess who.

[philosslayer]

2. She did not do it on purpose

If she did, wouldn't it be a bit stupid to do it in an African American church??

[SaranchaIsWaiting]

3. that would give her more cred to a certain group, wouldn't it?

[virtualobserver]

6. unless Hillary is "out of control" and "winging it"

it was a poorly designed, calculated move.

[daredtowork]

12. I think it was on purpose

I live in one of the most liberal cities on the US, and older white men here - highly educated ones that consider themselves very smart - insist on responding to #BlackLivesMatter by IMPOSING as forcefully as they can their response that "All Lives Matter". They see it as a matter of either upholding fundamental reason or universal humanity. They refuse to listen to any justification for a #BlackLivesMatter movement - and they seem to associate it with a threat of reverse racism, culture war, and a free pass for damaging their precious property.

The very fact they are in the position to IMPOSE is what makes them schmucks. That's what they don't get.

But I hear this relentlessly, so I'm sure Hillary does, too. It's a white complaint that they feel is being silenced by black activism. Every step forward for black people seems to be experienced as aggression.

So of course Hillary was sounding her dog whistle - this one will be met with approving nods far and wide. But it made a laughing stock of those Hillary faithful who have been trying to paint her as the apostle of PoC while dissing Bernie's economic stances as somehow not being hip to the " real" social issues. Well look at your "social" candidate now - coddling the Americans who desperately cling to bigotry in the name of superior reason. Sorry, Hillary is not that apostle, and that's why people have been fleeing from her - despite the fact she has big bucks and could be the first female POTUS - in the first place.

[morningfog]

19. It was in on purpose, it was stupid and her story was a lie.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

29. Of course it was.

[qazplm]

4. this is silly

she's quoting her mother, from decades ago, before "black lives matter" was a saying.

If she'd actually quoted her as saying "black lives matter" she'd be lying and pandering.

Of all the myriad things to criticize Clinton for validly...are you kidding me?

[SunSeeker]

8. +1

[morningfog]

20. And that is a bullshit story. She wanted to use all lives matter

And contrived the story to deliver the line.

When she could have set her white privilege aside an said black lives matter. She chose to use the right wing racism-denying offensive slogan.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

30. It was a dumb statement, plain and simple.

[brush]

26. No, of all the myriad things to say . . .

she says her mother told her that?

Even if that is true, in the current climate where there is much dissension over "black lives matter" vs "all live matters", it was either a clueless thing to say or a calculated one.

Whatever it was, it wasn't wise at all to say in a black church as she lost a lot of votes with that bit of clueless calculation.

If you're an ally act like it and don't come at us with that triangulating BS.

[Skinner]

5. Clearly this was a blunder that she could/should have avoided.

But I think people can tell from the context of Hillary Clinton's remark that she intended it in exactly the opposite way than the conservatives on twitter who were saying the phrase before she did.

Conservatives were using the phrase "all lives matter" as a response to "black lives matter." The implication was that they somehow felt that African-Americans were asking for special treatment because they only mentioned black lives. This is, of course, absurd. But it is consistent with the conservative narrative of white victimhood.

When Hillary Clinton said that "all lives matter" the implication was that our society does not treat all lives as if they matter. In other words, she was making the same argument as "black lives matter."

Put another way:

Hillary was arguing that "lives that matter" should include black lives.

Conservatives were arguing that "lives that matter" should include white lives. (Nevermind that white lives have always mattered in America.)

[RobertEarl]

9. She is being inclusive

I can appreciate that. We do not need division, we need unity, Hillary, imo, was speaking to that. Good for her.

Now, "Black lives matter" is not divisive, but pointing out that in our society there is an undercurrent that Black lives do not matter so much. It is a strong and powerful statement that America needs to hear until it completely groks the sentiment behind it.

[daredtowork]

16. Still a dog whistle

See my longer response above. This might relate to Hillary's recent trip to Silicon Valley, bit there seems to be a substantial discourse among otherwise intelligent and even liberal white people that's all about superimposing the "All Lives Matter" meme in the name of fundamental (male) reason and/or universal humanity. With a pinch of middle class aversion to property damage thrown in.

I can't talk to anyone who isn't a #BlackLivesMatter activist without getting this kind of response, and they usually use sheer volume ( noise and amount of words) to overwhelm my response.

Hillary is speaking to and for these people, and those words will resonate at the expense of #BlackLivesMatter.

[TM99]

17. Here are a few links that address

why this faux pas is getting the response it deserves.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-dan-schatz/on-being-asked-to-change-_b_6326614.html

https://storify.com/the_author_/why-all-lives-matter-is-an-inappropriate-response

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/01/12/whats-wrong-with-all-lives-matter/

[Skinner]

18. Thanks, I get that.

You are welcome to read my post and respond to the point I actually made.

[TM99]

21. Yes, I read your post.

You are suggesting she was trying to be inclusive.

She came across as tone deaf.

This is a very important social issue today. I know you know that.

[marym625]

22. wouldn't it be better

To not get into the same hole another candidate supporters have gotten into an just stop at your subject?

It was a screw up. O'Malley screwed up saying it. It is great he apologized. Sanders screwed up trying to yell over the protesters and going into his economic speech. He's changed his tone and expanded his focus. Supporters wouldn't let the "insult" drop.

Don't get into that hole. You have seen what can happen

[L0oniX]

10. Calculator must be on the blink again.

[hifiguy]

11. She has a brass ear, as we in the audiophile community

say about people who shop with their eyes rather than their ears. And she's always had it.

As a retail campaigner she has the light touch of a German jazz band and the down-home folksiness of Thurston Howell III.

[marym625]

23. +1

[Marr]

13. Odd. If this were Sanders, there'd be about 20 people proclaiming it proof that he is...

...if not exactly racist, then "tone deaf" to race issues at the very least.

They don't seem to mind this though. Huh. I can't figure this out.

[Autumn]

24. Yeah I noticed that.

[L0oniX]

25. ^^^this^^^

[brush]

27. Keep reading, we mind.

She was either clueless or calculating in saying that at a black church where people are aware of the dust-up of blm vs alm.

Whatever her reason for saying, it was dumb as she needs to act like an ally and stop the triangulation.

[840high]

28. bingo

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

31. Great point. Only Bernie doesn't need to make shit up - his history of supporting civil rights is legendary.

[seveneyes]

14. From here to hell