Jackson, Mississippi Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba Endorses Bernie Sanders
WASHINGTON -- Jackson, Mississippi Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba today endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders for president. Lumumba’s endorsement follows the People’s Caucus in Jackson, Mississippi which featured a diverse cross-section of the city who overwhelmingly voted in favor of Sanders. Lumumba will campaign for Bernie 2020 today in Columbia, South Carolina ahead of the First-in-the-South Democratic Primary.
“Mayor Lumumba is a strong advocate for progressive change and deeply dedicated to justice and community empowerment in Jackson,” said Sanders. “As someone who has spent his entire career fighting to restore power to the people, there is no one better to ensure the voices of all Jacksonians are included in our political process. I am honored to receive this endorsement and look forward to working together as we build a movement all across this country for economic, racial, social and environmental justice for all.”
Having lived in Jackson since the late-1980s, Lumumba is an attorney who worked to protect the election of the first black sheriff in Hinds County. He is a founding member of the Mississippi Human Rights Collective and co-organized the “Stand Up to Take It Down” rally at the State Capitol to support the removal of the confederate insignia from the Mississippi State flag. He currently serves as a representative of the Coalition for Economic Justice and is an active member of the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement.
“In Jackson, we are in pursuit of restorative justice that positively impacts the lives of every Jacksonian,” said Lumumba. “Part of this effort rests in the new economic view we are generating for a dignity economy. When engaged thoughtfully, this dignity economy will turn our communities away from cycles of humiliation like generational poverty.”
Earlier this month, constituents of Jackson held a Peoples' Caucus and invited representatives from each of the democratic campaigns that have shown interest in the City of Jackson and Mississippi at-large. The citizens who engaged in the caucuses represented a diverse cross-section of the city's demographic. These Jacksonians participated in a rigorous process and reached a consensus to determine who they believe could best represent our interests and advocate for their communities from the highest office.
“Today, we confidently announce our endorsement of Bernie Sanders for president in the 2020 election,” Lumumba continued. “Sen. Sanders has demonstrated consistency in his support of policies that align with the goals, concerns, and principles of our communities. While we believe the defeat of Donald Trump is important to the progress of the nation, it is simply not enough in Jackson. The state of Mississippi has been known to be at the bottom no matter who is in office. And so, we have to do more than just dismantle the world we don’t want to live in. We have to create the world that we do want to live in.”
In 2017, Attorney Lumumba defeated nine other viable candidates in the Democratic primary for mayor with a total of 55% of the vote. He went on to win the city’s general election by 93% on June 6, 2017.
