A collective of 100 prominent Black men penned an open letter standing in solidarity with the #WinWithBlackWomen campaign demanding a Black woman be nominated as Joe Biden’s vice president.

The letter, which was endorsed by NBA player Chris Paul, Nick Cannon, Dr. Michael Eric Dyson and Sean Combs among others, declared that Biden’s pick should be a Black woman due to the way they were “unfairly criticized and scrutinized” during the vetting process.

In a letter shared on Twitter by Washington Post reporter Matt Viser, the group acknowledged the criticism politicians like Sen. Kamala Harris face as Black women in politics.

“Was Joe Biden ever labeled ‘too ambitious’ because he ran for president three times?” the letter asked. “Should President Obama not have made him the VP because he had to worry about his ‘loyalty’ when he clearly had AMBITIONS to be president himself? Why does Senator Kamala Harris have to show remorse for questioning Biden’s previous stance on integrated busing during a democratic primary debate?”

An open letter from 100 prominent Black men — including @Diddy
@cthagod
@RevDrBarber
@CP3
@AttorneyCrump — has a blunt message for Joe Biden: "Failing to select a Black woman in 2020 means you will lose the election. We don't want to choose between the lesser of two evils." pic.twitter.com/tN4qolv1EI

— Matt Viser (@mviser) August 10, 2020

In a Politico article published in July, political insiders revealed a longtime Biden donor said he wouldn’t support Harris because she had “no remorse” in regard to comments made against the Democratic candidate during a debate.

The group of prominent Black men asked if Biden supporters have required the presidential hopeful to “show remorse” for past legislation he backed that harmed the Black community.

“Have Democratic Party leaders, allies, or donors ever required Joe Biden to show remorse for the 1986 or 1988 Anti Drug Abuse bills, which established mandatory minimum sentencing and subsequently crack-cocaine sentencing disparities, and by his own admission, led to mass incarceration? What about the 1994 Crime Bill? Let’s be clear about the kind of remorse and reckoning that matters in 2020 when the Black community is still suffering the consequences for these oppressive measures,” the letter stated.

“So, Black women are the only ones required to stay in their place and to show remorse for even questioning their own oppression?” the letter continued.

During a livestream conversation for the Black Girls Lead 2020 conference, Harris responded to the comments regarding her potential candidacy saying, “there will be people who say to you, 'you are out of your lane.' They are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. But don't you let that burden you," CNN reported.

The letter concluded by threatening Biden’s electoral prospects should he fail to select a Black woman as his running mate. It also called for Black women to receive their due respect from the Democratic Party and expressed support for a letter signed by 100 Black women leaders earlier this week.

“For too long Black women have been asked to do everything from rally the troops to risk their lives for the Democratic Party with no acknowledgment, no respect, no visibility, and certainly not enough support,” the letter declared.

As Blavity previously reported, the group of prominent Black women took issue with the selection process and the biased treatment toward respected Black politicians like Stacey Abrams, Rep. Val Demings and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

"We have also watched many of these highly-credentialed women be disrespected in the media over the last few weeks. Regardless of your political affiliation, whether it's the media, members of the vice presidential vetting committee, a former Governor, a top political donor, or a small town mayor: We are not your Aunt Jemimas," the letter from the women read.

WinWithBlackWomen

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