In South, Sanders evokes civil rights
GOP governors seek to muzzle voters, he says
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders made an appeal Monday to black voters in the Deep South, stopping at a historically African-american church and calling health care a “human right” that he equated to the civil rights movement.
Speaking before a racially diverse crowd at Mount Zion AME Zion Church in Alabama’s capital, Sanders renewed his calls for extending health care coverage to all Americans and reducing student debt.
“Just as civil rights is a human right, health care is a human right,” Sanders said to loud applause. The crowd for his midday speech was about half white despite the church’s deep ties to the civil rights movement.
Wrapping up a four-state swing that included stops in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, the Vermont senator is working to strengthen his support among black voters who comprise most of the Democratic primary electorate in many Southern states.
Mount Zion’s old location played a key role in the 1950s’ Montgomery bus boycott, and Sanders criticized what he called new threats to the right to vote — “the bedrock of American democracy,” he said.
“What an outrage it is today. I’m not talking about 60 years ago, I’m talking about today, that you have Republican governors all over this country trying to suppress the vote,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Sanders toured nearby civil rights sites and visited an impoverished area of the state where residents struggle with adequate wastewater sanitation.
Elsewhere on the campaign trail:
Former Vice President Joe Biden said Monday in Tennessee that eight years of a Donald Trump presidency would “fundamentally” change the character of the country, repeating his call to fellow Democrats for unity to oppose the Republican incumbent in 2020. Biden added that he’s running on a pledge to restore the soul of the country, saying he believes people are more united than divided on major issues such as improving access to health care and addressing climate change.
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris unveiled a pay-inequity proposal Monday that’s aimed at closing the gender pay gap by holding corporations accountable when men are paid more than women. Harris’ plan would require companies to disclose pay policies while applying for a mandatory “Equal Pay Certification” from the Equal Employment Opportunity