Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton is fighting to procure strong voting numbers among millennial minorities. In what seems to be a reoccurring theme in my prior blog posts, Clinton’s lack of substance regarding policies pertinent to young voters had turned off Black Live Matters supporters, like DeRay Mckesson. However, Mckesson now actively supports Clinton after a recent meeting in Cleveland. He stated that, “There was no platform the first time. There’s a platform now.” Burgeoning black support for Hillary has come either energetically, or pragmatically due to the enmity held for Donald Trump.

 

 

Clinton’s platform for young African Americans involves elements of controlling police violence and how to curtail bias while on duty, as well as legislation for racial profiling and job creation. Clinton has also been more successful in creating social events that cater to a targeted demographic, with rap superstar Jay-Z set to perform a “get out and vote” awareness concert. Hillary also stopped by the popular radio show “The Breakfast Club” and gave a shout out to the Howard University during their Homecoming celebration. A recent GenForward poll has 49 percent of African Americans claiming they will vote in the election; of the 49 percent, 80 percent openly support Clinton, with Trump only managing a meager 4 percent. However, her ground with black millennial felt short of once candidate Bernie Sanders, who held a substantial margin of 46 to 28 percent.

 

 

While Hillary has held solid ground among African Americans, she is also being aided by members of the hip-hop community. The “Anti-Trump” rhetoric created by numerous rappers has garnered improved support in the black community.  For example, the expletive ridden and controversial song entitled “F*** Donald Trump” has received over ten million hits on YouTube, as well as thousands of derogatory remarks about the real estate mogul in the comments section. https://youtu.be/WkZ5e94QnWk With the election less than a week away, Hillary’s fight to procure black millennials is not one against Trump, but rather against third parties that can pull valuable votes away from major party candidates. With young black independent voters like Erica Mines voicing her concern that Clinton, “… is not someone who can be trusted.”, it shows that the former Secretary of State still has some work to do.