Right on cue, Tuesday night’s MSNBC coverage of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) heaped effusive praise on a team of Black Lives Matter mothers whose sons died in police-involved shootings as a “profound experience” for those in attendance just eight days after they trashed Patricia Smith over a speech about her son’s death in the 2012 Benghazi terror attack.
Naturally, convention coverage co-host Rachel Madow went immediately to PoliticsNation host and race-peddler Al Sharpton who hailed the DNC’s decision to showcase these mothers as a “huge move in terms of the body politic of this country because I think it really said that this is a real central issue in this country that needs to be dealt with but that it needs to be clear.”
“I was so happy the nation could see what we see that have worked with them. These are not activists. These are not people that were looking for an issue. These are mothers who became activists because of their situation and if people could understand that and understand this could be their child,” Sharpton added.
Turning to AM Joy host Joy Reid, Maddow chose not to invoke Smith’s emotional speech but instead trashed the Republican National Convention (RNC) for simply suggesting that Blue Lives Matter and All Lives Matter and teed Reid up to blast this “contrast.”
Reid obviously agreed and blasted Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke for leading “the crowd in this rousing cheer for the acquittal of the officers in the Freddie Gray case” before irresponsibly suggesting:
[Y]ou know, that moment when you have the sort of thunderous applause from that audience and you're thinking wow, if you're Freddie Gray's mom, you know, it's almost as if he didn't exist to the people in that other arena — that these boys, these children, these young people didn't exist[.]
Reid’s next comments about the BLM mothers stood in stark contrast to her colleagues Chris Matthews smearing Pat Smith as having “ruined” the night with her “gross accusation” about Hillary Clinton and Chuck Todd bashing Benghazi as “cheap unity” for the “lowest common denominator crowd”:
[F]or the Democrats to bring out their mothers, it takes them out of being a hashtag and makes them people, human beings who had moms, who had families, who had lives ahead of them, who in some cases were children, you know and it was a real profound experience seeing them all together.
Speaking to the instances in which she’s met them, Reid concluded by boasting of how “incredibly profound” their presence on the stage had been: “I've interviewed and met so many of these women individually. Seeing them together was incredibly profound. It really, really was and I think the Democrats, they might have moved some African-Americans to care about this election tonight.”
The relevant portion of the transcript from the 9:00 p.m. Eastern hour of MSNBC’s Democratic National Convention (DNC) coverage on July 26 can be found below.
MSNBC: Democratic National Convention
July 26, 2016
8:38 p.m. Eastern
RACHEL MADDOW: A number — three mothers spoke who’ve lost their kids to police violence. Joining us now, our friend Joy Reid and also the Reverend Al Sharpton. Joy and Rev, that was an emotional thing. What do you make of the Democrats putting this in prime time, putting this as a centerpiece for making this case for Hillary Clinton?
AL SHARPTON: Well, I think it was a huge move in terms of the body politic of this country because I think it really said that this is a real central issue in this country that needs to be dealt with but that it needs to be clear. This is not a movement built on hate. This is not anti anyone. This is about what is fair and just and you know, I've worked, as you know, Rachel, with many of these women in bringing their movements to light with National Action Network and I was so happy the nation could see what we see that have worked with them. These are not activists. These are not people that were looking for an issue. These are mothers who became activists because of their situation and if people could understand that and understand this could be their child, which is why we must correct what needs to be corrected, as well as we need to protect and have relations with police, I think it moves it forward and by putting it front and center in this convention while the whole country is watching and about to make a decision on the next president of the United States, the first president to succeed a black president, I think it's a very important. It couldn't be underscored enough and it really puts front and center an issue that has too long been buried.
MADDOW: Joy Reid, contrast that last week at the RNC we saw chants both from the crowd and from the stage of Blue Lives Matter and All Lives Matter,” not meant on its own terms but as a rebuttal to Black Lives Matter. We heard the crowd tonight at the DNC, Joy, saying Black Lives Matter. We heard from these mothers who have lost children speaking after the Pittsburgh police chief. What do you make of how the Democrats chose to focus on this?
JOY REID: Yeah, no, I was thinking the same thing. That contrast when Sheriff David Clarke came out and really led the crowd in this rousing cheer for the acquittal of the officers in the Freddie Gray case and you know, that moment when you have the sort of thunderous applause from that audience and you're thinking wow, if you're Freddie Gray's mom, you know, it's almost as if he didn't exist to the people in that other arena — that these boys, these children, these young people didn't exist and for the Democrats to bring out their mothers, it takes them out of being a hashtag and makes them people, human beings who had moms, who had families, who had lives ahead of them, who in some cases were children, you know and it was a real profound experience seeing them all together. I've interviewed and met so many of these women individually. Seeing them together was incredibly profound. It really, really was and I think the Democrats, they might have moved some African-Americans to care about this election tonight.
