Progressive House candidate responds to criticism over past comments about Black Dems

William Lawrence, a progressive running in the Democratic primary for the U.S. House in Michigan, is responding to backlash over his previous criticism of Black political leaders.

The Huffington Post on Saturday published Lawrence’s comments from a 2024 episode of his podcast, in which the Democrat accused some Black lawmakers of being “a pillar, frankly, for establishment, capitalist, imperialist American power.”

“It’s a big problem for left politics in this country, and it gets us every single time,” Lawrence said in the episode. “It really defangs the white left and puts us in impossible positions, really.”

The Democratic candidate addressed this comment in a social media statement on Saturday, saying his words were “taken out of context.” “The way I made this point was clumsy, and I regret my choice of words,” he said. “I understand the potential impact when received out of context. The way the story is being reported does not reflect my beliefs.”

“The extent to which the older generation of Black political leadership are such a pillar, frankly, for establishment, capitalist, imperialist American power through their role as this kind of traditionalist, establishment-ist pillar of the Democratic Party, it’s a big problem,” Lawrence said around the 41:48 mark of the podcast. “It’s a big problem for left politics in this country. And it gets us every single time. It really defangs the white left and puts us in impossible positions, really.”