Joe Biden’s political resurrection in the race for the Democratic nomination was due largely to overwhelming support from black voters. Yet racial tensions laid bare by nationwide protests have revealed a problem for Biden in the November election — he doesn’t excite younger black voters who want change, not just a sympathetic ear.
Biden’s African American supporters have been urging him to offer concrete solutions to the trifecta of crises hitting black voters in 2020 — they are disproportionately harmed by the coronavirus, the recession and the police brutality that drew them into the streets. And they say not being Donald Trump isn’t enough.
People of color are expressing "anger, exhaustion and a real hunger for change,” said Aimee Allison, president of She the People, which focuses on elevating women of color in politics. "But I’m not hearing people excited about Democrats and, frankly, about the Biden campaign. Joe Biden has to step up and talk directly about racial justice and what his plan as president would be.”