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Photo Credit: Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
Photo Credit: Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
Harris pointed out that there needs to be "law enforcement accountability," during the criminal justice forum.
Democratic candidates Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris and Joe Biden recently received flack for comments at a forum at South Carolina Benedict College. Hosted at the historically black college, the criminal justice forum was organized to provide an opportunity for candidates to interact with Benedict College students and their community.
Sander's response to the following question swiftly went viral, "If I was your son, what advice would you give me the next time I would be pulled over by a police officer?" According to a video, the Vermont senator responded, "I would do my best to identify who that police officer is in a polite way, ask him for his or her name."
He also added:
"I would respect what they are doing so that you don't get shot in the back of the head, but I would be very mindful of the fact that, as a nation, we have got to hold police officers accountable for the actions they commit. So, to answer your question, I would be very cautious if you were my son in terms of dealing with our police officers, but I would also defend my rights and know my rights and make sure, if possible, that police officer’s [body] camera is on."
During the forum and the historically black college, former Vice President Joe Biden was asked the same question by a female student. In response he shared, "If you were my daughter you'd be a Caucasian girl and you wouldn't be pulled over." He went on to state: "Institutional racism should no longer exist. As president, I’ll put forward change to help put an end to it."
Another poignant moment consisted of Harris speaking on policing. When prompted to touch on police and the justice system she shared:
"There needs to be law enforcement accountability. I think I'm one of the only, but I know it in my plan because I know it is unique around the law enforcement accountability that in addition to police it needs to be about prosecutors. In fact you'll see in my plan that I'm going to give the Department of Justice of the United States explicit authority to investigate prosecutor's offices with patterns of discrimination and abuse of power."
Take a look at the clips below.
