Ta-Nehisi Coates Says He’s Voting for Sanders Despite Criticizing Him on Reparations
Influential writer Ta-Nehisi Coates recently wrote a very critical piece challenging Bernie Sanders for not supporting reparations, given his otherwise radical platform, but he revealed today he’s voting for the Vermont senator in an interview with Democracy Now!‘s Amy Goodman.
He repeated his criticism that for as good as Sanders’ comments about equality and poverty sound, his avoidance of “the issue of white supremacy” is a serious problem. Coates went through reason after reason he feels reparations are actually important for the future president to address.
Coates explained exactly why he’s putting the pressure on Sanders above anyone else:
“Maybe I’m wrong for that… I’m thrilled to see an actual radical… uniquely left-wing option in the Democratic Party. If we can’t get the left––if we on the left can’t embrace this idea that black folks have been specifically injured and that there should be specific remedies for that injury, we have no hope. You know, we really, really have no hope. And so, you know, forgive me for expecting more of Senator Sanders than I expect of Senator Clinton, but I do.”
However, he did say towards the end of the interview that he’s voting for Sanders, telling Goodman, “Yes, I will vote for Senator Sanders. My son influenced me.”
Coates took to Twitter earlier to clarify that he’s not exactly in the Bernie bandwagon, just that he felt, in the moment, transparency was important:
Quick clarification: I was asked this morning on @democracynow who I was voting for.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
I answered. It seemed weird to not do so, given I make a career asking awkward questions.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
But that said, I'm not "endorsing" anyone. I'm voting for who I'm voting for (Sen. Sanders.)
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
But that's me, the citizen. Me, the writer doesn't speak for anyone else and doesn't intend to try to sway anyone else.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
That's between you, the ballot and (maybe) your God. Would rather have not answered the question. But it would have been evasive not to.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
And given that I generally go after people for just those sorts of evasions, I don't think there was much else to do.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
Hope that makes some sort of sense.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
Addendum: No reason to be particularly excited about my personal vote. I'm gonna keep writing like I'm writing.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
So yeah. This ain't "feeling the Bern." It's just trying to be a decent citizen and as transparent as I can be.
— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) February 10, 2016
You can watch Coates’ full Democracy Now! interview above.
[image via screengrab]
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