https://ca.news.yahoo.com/biden-launches-fresh-bid-election-160007985.htmlReported by Yahoo. President Joe Biden initiated a renewed effort to gain support from African American voters on Friday, aiming to strengthen the Democratic coalition that helped him win against Republican Donald Trump in 2020.
Biden visited the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., and emphasized, “Black history is American history.” According to Reuters
Later, he and Vice President Kamala Harris met privately at the White House with the Divine Nine, a group of historically Black sororities and fraternities. Harris is an alumna of Alpha Kappa Alpha from her time at Howard University.
On Thursday, Biden met with families connected to the Supreme Court’s historic Brown v. Board of Education ruling, marking its 70th anniversary and its role in desegregating schools.
“We learn better when we learn together,” Biden remarked at the museum.
These events are building up to Biden’s commencement speech on Sunday at Morehouse College in Atlanta, a historically Black institution and alma mater of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. On Saturday, he will attend a Georgia event aimed at engaging Black voters.
Democrats are currently divided over Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza, as indicated by a new Reuters/Ipsos poll, causing tension within the coalition that supported his 2020 victory over Trump.
A New York Times/Siena College poll this week showed Trump gaining 20% of the Black vote, indicating progress in a demographic that typically favors Democrats.
Biden criticized Trump and other Republicans for opposing programs designed to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion.
On Wednesday, Biden spoke with Atlanta radio host Darian “Big Tigger” Morgan, sharply criticizing Trump, who is running for president again in the November 5 election.
“Look, Trump hurt Black people every chance he got,” Biden said. “Black unemployment and uninsurance rates increased under Trump. His tax plan exacerbated discrimination, benefiting white households more than Black households. Their mishandling of the COVID-19 response resulted in higher fatalities and business closures in Black communities.”
Some Morehouse faculty and students had urged the college to rescind Biden’s invitation due to his administration’s strong support for Israel in the Gaza conflict, where the death toll has exceeded 35,000. However, the White House confirmed that Biden’s visit will proceed as scheduled on Sunday.
Biden has enacted policies benefiting Black Americans, such as expanding healthcare access and promoting economic gains that led to record-low Black unemployment and a significant reduction in childhood poverty through the Child Tax Credit expansion in 2021.
Opinion polls suggest a tight race between Biden and Trump in the upcoming election, making turnout among Black voters—significant in key battleground states like Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania—crucial for Biden’s reelection strategy.
Biden’s reelection campaign, through a memo from senior adviser Trey Baker, emphasized their commitment to earning every vote. “We are not, and will not, parachute into these communities at the last minute, expecting their vote.
Every day, from now until election day, we will continue working diligently to ensure that come November, Black voters send Joe Biden and Kamala Harris back to the White House to continue delivering for Black America in unprecedented ways,” Baker stated.
