Bernie Sanders continues his hip-hop outreach with another campaign video geared toward helping him secure youth votes, this time featuring Killer Mike and a discussion about how wealth works and why it’s so important to reversing social and racial inequalities. Previously, Bernie spoke with Cardi B, a surprisingly astute political observer, about education and healthcare. In the latest video with Mike, a longtime supporter of Bernie and his policies, Bernie expands on some of those ideas with Mike’s help, joking that the rapper says it far better than he ever has.
“Kids in hip-hop come from working class and poor environments,” Mike says of his support for Bernie, while refuting the idea that Bernie is only pandering to the hip-hop “community.” “Black people are more disproportionately affected by diabetes than any other group. So when you say diabetes and are talking about free health care, I want people who look like me on the other side of the camera to recognize this is a black issue.”
Meanwhile, Mike shouts out Cardi for her prior participation in the campaign, agreeing with her that “I am willing to pay the taxes I pay. I would just like to see my money go into education.” He also redefines what “rich” should look like: “My grandparents were never rich. They raised three successful homeowners. We never had to go back to them and ask them. That’s rich. Rich is being able to spend the time with your family. Rich is not an endless pursuit of money.”
“I wanna see us be the country that we truly can be,” he says, “That we never have been, but that we can truly be.”