Russell Simmons Demands an Apology From Bill Clinton Over Black Lives Matter Comments
”The small drug users who were diseased and locked away deserve it? Bill Clinton u owe the black community and black lives matter an apology,“ Def Jam Recordings co-founder says
Russell Simmons was not impressed with Bill Clinton’s comments about the Black Lives Matter movement — and let the former president know it.
“The small drug users who were diseased and locked away deserve it? Bill Clinton u owe the black community and black lives matter an apology,” the Def Jam Recordings co-founder and Phat Farm founder tweeted Thursday night.
Simmons also linked out to a report on NPR detailing the former president’s heated exchange with Black Lives Matter protesters earlier in the day at a Hillary Clinton campaign event in Philadelphia, where he was forced to defend his 1994 crime bill and his wife’s past statements regarding race.
Clinton claimed the bill earned bipartisan support, diversified the police force, and lowered the country’s crime rate, thus benefitting African-Americans, according to NPR.
He then turned to a protester’s sign that read “black youth are not super predators,” telling the person, who had repeatedly interrupted him: “I don’t know how you would characterize the gang leaders who got 13-year-old kids hopped up on crack and sent them out onto the street to murder other African-American children.
“Maybe you thought they were good citizens … You are defending the people who kill the lives you say matter. Tell the truth. You are defending the people who cause young people to go out and take guns.”
“I talked to a lot of African-American groups,” Clinton continued. “They thought black lives matter. They said take this bill, because our kids are being shot in the street by gangs. We have 13-year-old kids planning their own funerals.”
Clinton also addressed claims by the protesters that the 1996 welfare reform bill increased poverty among African-Americans.
“They say the welfare reform bill increased poverty. Then why did we have the largest drop in African American poverty in history when I was president?” he asked.
As for his own wife and the upcoming presidential election: “This election is about the future. They’re trying to blame her for something she didn’t do,” he said.
Simmons has long been an outspoken supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement. In December 2014, he joined thousands of protesters in the “Millions March NYC” event to speak out against police brutality.
Just days before the Oscars last February, the business mogul’s emerging video programming brand All Def Digital hosted the first-ever All Def Movie Awards, with movies such as “Beasts of No Nation,” “Chi-Raq,” “Concussion,” “Creed,” “Dope” and “Straight Outta Compton” nominated for awards.
See Simmons’ tweet below.
The small drug users who were diseased and locked away deserve it? Bill Clinton u owe the black community and black lives matter an apology
Ferguson Fallout: The Scene Following Decision Not to Indict Officer Darren Wilson (Photos)
Police officers march by a burning squad car during a demonstration in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Looters run out of a store in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Looters break into a business during unrest in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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A protester is surrounded by tear gas in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Firefighters try to extinguish a burning restaurant in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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A restaurant is set on fire by protesters in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Protesters kneel with their hands up in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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A row of cars is set on fire at a used car lot during a demonstration in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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St. Louis Co. Prosecutor Robert McCulloch announces the grand jury's decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in Clayton, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Demonstrators in Ferguson, Missouri listen to a car radio as the grand jury's decision is delivered on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Heavily armed police officers confront protesters in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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St. Louis County police officers in riot gear guard the Ferguson police department on Nov. 24, 2014.
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A suspected looter is detained outside a Dollar Store in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Police deploy tear gas during a demonstration in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.
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CNN Reporter Sara Sidner was hit in the head with a rock while covering the Ferguson unrest on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Protesters march in New York City following the grand jury decision in Missouri, Nov. 24, 2014.
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Protesters march through the streets of New York City after learning Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson would not be charged, Nov. 24, 2014.
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A woman faces police officers on the Harbor Freeway (110) in Los Angeles during a protest against the Ferguson grand jury decision on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Protesters gather outside a shopping center in the Crenshaw District of Los Angeles on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Protesters in Beverly Hills block traffic at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and Rodeo Dr. in reaction to the Ferguson grand jury decision on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Protesters gather outside the White House after the Ferguson grand jury decision on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Hundreds of protesters, many of them Howard University students, gather outside the White House after the Ferguson grand jury decision on Nov. 24, 2014.
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President Barack Obama calls for calm during a news conference in Washington, DC after the grand jury's decision on Nov. 24, 2014.
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Brown family attorney Benjamin Crump speaks during a press conference about the Ferguson grand jury decision in Dellwood, Missouri on Nov. 25, 2014.
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A worker cleans up glass at a business that was damaged during a demonstration following the grand jury decision in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 25, 2014.
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Ferguson Mayor James W. Knowles III addresses the delayed deployment of the National Guard at a press conference in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 25, 2014.
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Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon speaks about the widespread rioting and looting following the Ferguson grand jury decision during a news conference on Nov. 25, 2014.
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Missouri national guardsmen line up in front of the Ferguson police station on Nov. 25, 2014, ready to be deployed a day after demonstrators caused extensive damage in the city after the grand jury decision.
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Police officers secure the Los Angeles Police Department Headquarters after protesters pushed over barricades during demonstrations on Nov. 25, 2014.
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A protester sits in the back of a Los Angles Police Department transport bus in the early morning hours of Nov. 26, 2014, after being arrested at a protest against the Ferguson grand jury decision.
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Police arrest a Ferguson protester during the early morning hours of Nov. 26, 2014.
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A protester has her eyes flushed after being pepper sprayed by police in Ferguson on Nov. 26, 2014.
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Protesters turned over a police car during a demonstration on Nov. 25, 2014 in Ferguson.
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Lesley McSpadden, mother of Michael Brown Jr., attends a press conference in New York City on Nov. 26, 2014 to pray and address the events of the last few days.
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Protesters set up barricades and block the 101 freeway in Los Angeles following the Ferguson grand jury decision, during a protest on Nov. 25, 2014.
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Violence erupts in Ferguson, and protests are held across the country after a grand jury decided Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson would not face criminal charges in the shooting death of Michael Brown
Police officers march by a burning squad car during a demonstration in Ferguson, Missouri on Nov. 24, 2014.