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Vice President Kamala Harris lavished praise on far-left MSNBC host Al Sharpton during a speech at his organization on Friday, calling him part of the "conscience of our country."

Sharpton, who has hosted a show on MSNBC for more than a decade, is a longtime Democratic Party booster and adviser, and has a spotted background that's included accusations of antisemitism and race-baiting.

The love fest happened Friday afternoon during the ongoing 2023 National Action Network convention.

SHARPTON CONVENTION KEYNOTE SPEAKER PRAISED FARRAKHAN, CALLED TO MAKE GAYS UNCOMFORTABLE IN THEIR SIN

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about her "love" for Rev. Al Sharpton during a speech on Friday. (Screenshot/Twitter)

During her speech, which also touched on Republican extremism, gun control and other Democratic Party staples, Harris took some time to provide Sharpton with some heavy flattery.

Directing her speech toward him, Harris adopted a joyful, folksy accent and said, "Rev! I love you!"

"And I thank you on behalf of all of us everyone for all that you do, and all that you are," she added.

Harris continued, praising the MSNBC host as someone who embodies truthfulness and accountability in America.

"And as I have said in public and in private many times, Rev, no matter where you are, you are always a voice of truth speaking about the importance of justice for all people," she said.

She concluded, "You are part of the conscience of our country and I thank you for all that you do." The line elicited raucous cheers from the audience.

TEXAS CITY USED FEDERAL COVID RELIEF FUNDS FOR RACIAL EQUITY IN AUDACIOUS AGENDA

Vice President Kamala Harris shares an anecdote at an event in Colorado.

Despite Harriss description of Sharpton as a great truth teller and proponent of justice over the years, critics of the politician and mainstream media pundit allege that he has spread falsehoods, promoted antisemitism, and has inflamed the racial divide in the country.

Recently, antisemitism watchdog organization "StopAntisemitism" slammed Sharpton for his "decades-long history of antisemitic rhetoric." The group also slammed President Biden for associating with him.

In early 2022, MSNBC was berated by social media critics for giving Sharpton a platform to speak about an attack on a Texas synagogue at the time.

After the reverend spoke about the attack on MSNBCs "Deadline: White House," critics slammed the network for featuring the analysis of someone who is "an expert at targeting Jewish communities."

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Sharpton also got a chilly reception while making a publicized visit to Haitian migrants who had just crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in 2021. While he held a press conference at local migrant detention camp, hecklers were heard yelling, "Del Rio is a loving, caring community. We don't want your racism in Texas. Get out of here! Nobody wants to hear your racist nonsense in Del Rio!"

The wife of a border patrol agent told a local Fox affiliate at the time, "He [incites] violence and riots."

Excerpt from:
Kamala Harris gushes over MSNBC's Al Sharpton as 'conscience of our country - Fox News

Associated PressApr 13, 20232 Minute Read

NEW YORK -- WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner made a surprise appearance Friday at a women's empowerment luncheon held during the Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network in New York City.

Griner, who this week announced that she would write a book about her nearly 10-month detainment in Russia, thanked those gathered at the luncheon for the advocacy that contributed to her release last December.

"Everyone in this room that came together, that sent up every prayer, it reached me while I was there," Griner, 32, told a packed hotel banquet hall in midtown Manhattan.

"I want to continue to fight to bring every American detained overseas," she said.

For months during her detainment, Sharpton, Black clergy and racial justice activists across the U.S. pushed U.S. officials to secure the basketball star's release. She was freed in exchange for the notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Sharpton presented Griner with an award, saying she exhibited strength during her detainment.

The 6-foot-9 Griner has re-signed with the Phoenix Mercury and will resume her WNBA career when the season tips off next month.

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Brittney Griner makes appearance at the Rev. Al Sharpton event - ESPN

News

By Olivia Land

April 19, 2023 | 2:00pm

Tyre Nichols' beating was captured in police body camera footage.AP

The family of Tyre Nichols filed a $550 million lawsuit against the city of Memphis and police officers this week, just over three months after the FedEx driver died following a beating at the hands of law enforcement.

Nichols, 29, was pronounced dead Jan. 10 after five since-fired officers reportedly beat, slapped, pepper-sprayed and kicked him during a traffic stop just 60 yards from his familys home.

The suit filed Wednesday for Nichols mother, RowVaugh Wells, accuses Memphis Police Director Cerelyn CJ Davis of starting the Scorpion crime suppression unit that allegedly used extreme intimidation, humiliation, and violence to disproportionately target young black men.

At least two of the officers involved in Nichols death were part of the Scorpion squad, which was disbanded in late January.

All five were also fired and charged with second-degree murder.

The reasons the officers pulled the father of one over have never been substantiated, the suit reads.

It alleges that he was targeted because he was black.

In addition to Davis and the five charged officers, the lawsuit names the city of Memphis, one officer who was fired but spared criminal charges, and another officer who retired before he could be let go as defendants.

It also cites three Memphis Fire Department employees who were fired after reports emerged that they failed to render aid to Nichols after the beating.

The lawsuit writes that Nichols, who sustained severe injuries and internal bleeding, was left unrecognizable by the attack.

The attorneys for Nichols mother compared the Memphis officers to a modern-day lynch mob and likened the beating to the 1955 lynching death of Emmett Till.

Unlike Till, this lynching was carried out by those adorned in department sweatshirts and vests and their actions were sanctioned expressly and implicitly by the City of Memphis, the filing alleges.

The charged officers Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr. and Justin Smith were incriminated in part by their own body camera footage, which showed them relentlessly targeting Nichols and then ignoring him as he sat handcuffed and propped against a police car.

All five pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in February.

Martin, Haley and Officer Preston Hemphill initially claimed they pulled Nichols over on Jan. 7 because he was driving recklessly.

They then forced Nichols from his car and pepper-sprayed him while cursing and threatening him.

When Nichols broke free, police records note that Hemphill fired his stun gun.

Mills, Bean and Smith captured Nichols a few minutes later.

Police records indicate that the three men were joined by Martin and Haley as they proceeded to punch Nichols and beat him with a baton.

Nichols mother seeks a jury trial and financial damages worth $550 million, according to the AP, citing attorney Ben Crump.

Nichols death the latest in a string of harrowing encounters between police and black individuals prompted a national outcry.

His Feb. 1 funeral drew hundreds of mourners, including Vice President Kamala Harris and the Rev. Al Sharpton, who delivered the eulogy.

Days later, Nichols mother and stepfather were guests at President Bidens State of the Union address.

With Post wires

https://nypost.com/2023/04/19/tyre-nichols-family-sues-memphis-city-police-officers/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons

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Tyre Nichols family sues city of Memphis, police officers for $550M - New York Post

April 17, 2023

Mika Brzezinski: The Republican-led House Judiciary Committee will head to New York City today for a special field hearing meant to discredit the prosecutor leading the criminal case against Donald Trump there.

It is exactly the top of the hour. In Manhattan, committee chair Jim Jordan, says he plans to highlight the "Pro crime anti-victim policies of District Attorney Alvin Bragg." Bragg has become a top political target of Republicans for his decision to charge Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records this month after a grand jury voted in favor of indicting the former president.

Last week, the DA filed a federal lawsuit against Jordan over what he says are, "Brazen and unconstitutional attempts to interfere with a state-run investigation." Despite focusing on Bragg, the Judiciary Committee has not invited him to testify at today's hearing. I wonder why.

Let's bring in the mayor of New York City, Eric Adams. By the way, what do you think of this field hearing in your city about crime?

Mayor Eric Adams: I think it's the highest level of hypocrisy. We know that cities all across America are dealing with the issues around public safety, particularly the criminal justice system. And right in the largest city in Ohio, it was reported today in one of the tabloids, the murders are up over 50 percent in the first quarter. And so, while crime is going down, homicides are going down here, shooters are going down here, some of the major crimes, you're trending in the right direction. Our subway system crime is going down. So I think coming here and highlighting DA Bragg is just really a political stunt.

Brzezinski: The DA has been taking it from all sides with Donald Trump going after him right before the indictment. And now, Trump is being very careful with his words. But the heat that he's getting still exists and yet he is fighting back and suing even.

Jonathan Lemire: District Attorney Bragg has been very forceful in rebutting these Republican efforts. And Mr. Mayor, of course, some of these threats from those close to former President Trump, we know that a letter with suspicious powder was sent to the DA's office two weeks ago, has of course called for a greater NYPD presence. I was down there, near the courthouse, a couple of weeks ago when the former president was indicted, it was locked down.

But talk to us about that. The strain this is putting on the city right now as this trial... We've had one moment. And when the former president comes back in the months ahead, what is that going to do? Are the Republicans simply making your job harder?

Mayor Adams: It's the duality of what's happening on a state level, where Attorney General James is also carrying out her investigation. And then, you have not only the threats. We are going to make sure that DA Braggs has the proper protection around him, but each time the former president comes to the city, he has a tendency to bring those who are coming from outside, trying to disrupt our way of life. But the New York City Police Department is always prepared, and we are going to make sure this trial goes off without a problem.

Reverend Al Sharpton: Mr. Mayor, I might suggest that maybe the reason the congressman, Chairman Jordan wants to come to New York is it's safer than if he did it in Columbus, Ohio, where the data shows it's much more dangerous, not to minimize the challenges we face here.

But talk about how you are working with other mayors now and civil rights leaders to set a national agenda. We talked last week at National Action Networks' Conference, where you chaired with a couple of other mayors the need to now start dealing with gun violence and violence in our urban communities in a collective, national agenda. Because what we are saying is that we must go from the noun of progressive to the adjective, what is progressive?

Mayor Adams: So true.

Reverend Sharpton: There's nothing progressive about letting criminals go and there's nothing progressive about bad police or bad policing policy. Talk about this national drive that you want to involve people, including people that may have been in need of a second chance to know how to deal with these issues.

Mayor Adams: So true. And I think a real reflection of where we are now as a nation is what happened in Chicago. A thousand young people went downtown. And we have to make sure, as I say, intervention and prevention. You cannot have the cities disrupted. Our goal is to bring together mayors across the entire country and partner with civil rights leaders and business leaders of coming out with a real blueprint for these cities in our country, an urban agenda that we want to make sure deals with how do we prevent these issues from happening and how do we also make sure we make our cities safer.

Brzezinski: And you know what, it's not just cities now in terms of mass shootings, it's everywhere. Cities are dealing with it predominantly but listen to this latest... And by the way, it's practically daily when it comes to mass shootings. Alabama police are seeking information from the public after a mass shooting at a sweet 16 birthday party. Four people were killed. And get this, 28 people were injured. NBC News correspondent Priscilla Thompson has the latest.

[Segment begins.]

Priscilla Thompson: What began as a sweet 16 party celebrating life ended in a massacre.

Victim: It's very horrific for the children, probably traumatizing. Plus, it was her 16th birthday party.

Thompson: The tragedy taking place inside a small dance studio in Dadeville, Alabama. The tiny town just 60 miles northeast of Montgomery.

Michael Taylor: Honestly, I was hoping it wasn't true. I was hoping that somebody was shooting some fireworks outside and scaring the kids because, you know, we don't have any gun violence here.

Thompson: Investigators say a gunman opened fire Saturday night, killing four, and that 28 others were injured.

Michael Taylor is an assistant football coach at Dadeville High.

Taylor: We're going to have to really be a family now. Some counseling for kids, because it is going to take a while for them to kind of recover from this.

Thompson: Investigators providing few details about how the shooting unfolded and declining to say whether they have identified or arrested a suspect, confirming only that the investigation remains ongoing.

Sgt. Jeremy Burkett: We've got to have information from the community. So if you are at home right now or you know somebody that has any information, we absolutely need you to share it.

Thompson: Authorities say there is no active threat. Dadeville is the latest community to be shattered by gun violence. The shooting there happening within hours of a deadly mass shooting in Louisville, Kentucky. Police say two people died and four more were rushed to the hospital after shots were fired into a crowd at a park.

Donna Purvis: I'm so tired of this, and I can't make any sense of it.

Thompson: That shooting just days after a mass shooting at a bank in the same city left five dead. More prayers, but little solutions.

[Segment ends.]

Brzezinski: So Elise, Jordan, in this shooting, just like all the others, the stories are unfathomable, a 16-year-old is celebrating her sweet 16. And among the victims, her brother, young people. And politically, young people are taking up this issue and they're beginning to say, "We have to worry about ourselves because no one else will."

Elise Jordan: That's just heartbreaking. And in such a small, deep south town.

Brzezinski: Were they even prepared? Think about the question you raised.

Jordan: Was there a hospital with a large trauma unit and surgeons readily available for that volume of victims coming in?

Brzezinski: 28 injured, four dead.

Jordan: It's just heartbreaking. And I think sometimes about how I want to move home to Mississippi and I think about schools, now that I have a child who's going to be going to school in a couple of years.

Brzezinski: It's a real thing.

Jordan: There are many reasons I don't want the child to go to a New York City public school, I'll be honest, or any

Brzezinski: Big city.

Jordan: I'm from the south. Any big city school. But there's never been a mass shooting at a New York City school, which is perhaps the most attractive aspect. And it's sad that that has to be first and foremost.Can you talk about, what are the policy choices that New York City has made that have made the schools overall fairly safe?

Mayor Adams: No, and I think you raised a good point. When you see a sweet 16 turn into a bitter reality of violence, it just really traumatized our entire country. That bullet, when it hit the bodies of individuals, the emotional pathway didn't stop. It is ripping apart anyone that's a parent. And when you look at what we did here, we have not had a shooting on school grounds at all. Mass shootings or not. We've confiscated weapons from young people who carry them into schools, and it's a combination of our school safety officers and our police officers. What's interesting is that many were calling to remove school safety officers at the schools, and I stated when I ran for office, that will not happen as long as I'm the Mayor.

Brzezinski: You know what was also a really safe place to be? The NRA convention because they had metal detectors there and couldn't have guns in there. So if you want to be safe, go to an NRA convention and what you'll find, Reverend Al, as you pointed out in our last hour, is their guns. There'll be kids taking pictures, holding guns, people allowing kids to hold guns and taking pictures of that. I'm not going to do the shock opera because it's heartbreaking, because it's ripping our country and our children apart.

Mayor Adams: It's so true.

Reverend Sharpton: Now, to have little children holding guns, to normalize it at that age is just sinful. But you know, Mr. Mayor, when I was growing up in Brooklyn, I read this book by John Kennedy, Profiles in Courage. Leadership is courage. And one of the things you are doing and other mayors that are hearkening to your call, is showing courage. Enough courage to stand up to the extremists on the left and the right because people are dying. And we need courageous leadership at this time rather than these daily reports of, "Oh, the mayor's shooting now moved here. Oh, it's here. Oh, do you have a camera there?" I mean, this is insane.

Mayor Adams: And it's this co-conspiratorial behavior of the far, far left and the far, far right. The American people are caught in the middle. The far, far right is saying everyone should have a gun and the far, far left is stating that those who use a gun, nothing should happen, no repercussions. As American people we're caught in the middle of that madness.

Brzezinski: No. And then you think about this field hearing, this is what they should be talking about. And instead... We should be having a massive collective national conversation on how to prevent mass shootings.

I mean, every Republican out there who's so extreme on this issue and there are way too many, a mass shooting is going to come to a town or a city or a neighborhood near you. And I don't say that with joy. I don't say that like, "Gotcha." I say that like, "Are you crazy? Do you really want to live like this? Do you want your children and grandchildren to live worried that they are going to die just leaving their homes?" Jonathan Lemire. And yet this field hearing, picking at Alvin Bragg. I mean, they're lost.

Lemire: Yeah. We should note the priorities of this Republican Congress right now. This field hearing with Alvin Bragg and Hunter Biden and the laptop, no work on guns, no work on other issues that'd be paramount to the American people and frankly not even on the looming debt ceiling fight, which the White House should be urging them to do.

Mr. Mayor, we'll switch gears and get you to talk about another thing that's become a bit of a personal crusade of yours lately. Rats.

Brzezinski: Oh my gosh.

Lemire: So you've appointed a rat czar.

Brzezinski: Yes. That's a good idea. Washington, D.C. needs to do that too.

Lemire: So there's New York City, home to many of us, has a rat problem. Tell us what you're trying to do about it.

Brzezinski: Yeah.

Mayor Adams: And it's what we found, first of all, I don't know if people really understand the fact that I hate rats.

Lemire: [Inaudible] right here, you hate rats.

Brzezinski: You definitely do.

Mayor Adams: And really this crusade started when I was borough president. A group of mothers came in showing me photos of their babies being bitten by rats and no one cared. They lived in public housing. And we started to look at how do we go about dealing with this. Number one is, it's an emotional issue as well as a health issue. Can you imagine starting your day and a rat jumps out at your cabinet? It just traumatized you.

So we are hiring a czar that is going to coordinate all of our efforts. It was a disjointed effort where we had the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Department of Sanitation, Department of Parks, Department of Education, all operating separately, and now we are coordinating the effort. We found an amazing young lady. At 10-years-old, she did a petition on her block to get rid of rodents.

Brzezinski: This is a really good idea.

Mayor Adams: Yes, yes.

Brzezinski: This is so important. I think other cities need... I definitely know, having spent time in Washington, that it's very difficult and you really have to have an entire entity and a person on top of it.

Mayor Adams: You do.

Brzezinski: Listen, the end of an era in New York City, Phantom of the Opera.

Mayor Adams: Yes, yes.

Brzezinski: You gave Andrew Lloyd Webber a key to the city. Talk about that.

Mayor Adams: Well, mainly because of his great play, Cats, I want him to bring them back to get these rats.

[Laughter.]

Lemire: There you go. Nicely done.

Brzezinski: You need it. You need it.

Mayor Adams: But Phantom of the Opera, just so many. Evita, we all know the tune Don't Cry For Me Argentina. I mean those songs and plays just really shaped our lives and 50 years of commitment and dedication. He has a new play. We are really excited and we wanted to give him the key to the city.

Brzezinski: Lovely. Andrew Lloyd Webber, by the way, is going to be on the show this morning.

Mayor Adams: Oh, great.

Brzezinski: All right. New York City Mayor Eric Adams, thank you very much for coming. We appreciate it.

Mayor Adams: Thank you so much. Great to be here.

###

Originally posted here:
Transcript: Mayor Eric Adams Appears Live on MSNBC'S - nyc.gov

Mayor Adams hosts faith leaders (photo: Benny Polatseck/Mayoral Photography Office)

Mayor Eric Adams recently made headlines for suggesting in a speech that the City of New York would benefit from there being no separation between church and state. On CNNs State of the Union some days later, Adams clarified his remarks, stating that Government should not interfere with religion, and religion should not interfere with government. Though this walk-back did not quell the controversy, it did highlight the precariousness of navigating religion in public life.

Some background on Adams beliefs and the broader issue of religion and politics gives context to the mayors comments. Most people in my corner of the political world know me for my work as a political consultant and more recently as a political analyst. Many do not know that I am also an ordained minister and that for 16 years I pastored several congregations. My graduate training was in the field of theology; I studied at New Yorks Union Theological Seminary under Dr. James Cone, the founder of the Black theology of liberation movement in the United States.

Here, I put on my theologians hat and examine Mayor Adams recent postulations and their significance for the broader scope of religion and politics.

To begin to understand the mayors recent remarks it helps to know his religious background. The mayor was raised in a Church of God in Christ (COGIC) congregation. COGIC is a Pentecostal denomination, and a predominantly Black denomination. In fact, it is the largest Pentecostal movement in the United States. The importance of the Black church tradition on his public service has been previously acknowledged by Mayor Adams. In a late 2021 campaign interview with Gotham Gazette, Adams declared, I would not be who I am if it wasnt for the Black church, as a police officer and now as the future mayor of the city.

COGICs reach within the Black community is extensive. The Rev. Al Sharpton was ordained in COGIC, under the leadership of Bishop F.D. Washington, an extraordinary preacher and ecclesial leader. COGIC also counts among its most widely familiar members Denzel Washington (whose family has roots at the Allen Memorial Church of God in Christ congregation in Mount Vernon, NY), Stevie Wonder, and Chris Tucker.

As a Pentecostal denomination, COGIC embraces a theology that is fairly common within such a Christian tradition. It centers the Bible as the Word of God, and embraces many biblical narratives as literal facts, void of any mythic import. It focuses on personal piety; and the belief that Gods Spirit is not a reality aloof from human affairs but is in fact often and consistently at work in individual lives and capable of transforming broader society. This same Spirit is active in the empowerment and uplifting of the most vulnerable.

The significant communal involvement of many Pentecostal and Evangelical churches in underserved communities around our city and state is therefore not surprising. Many of the organizations that have worked on housing, drug rehabilitation, and food insecurity issues, for instance, and that have done so with little or no government funding, have been church-led. To understand Mayor Adams belief that his election is part of Gods purpose for New York is to be aware of this commitment and involvement.

Pentecostals firmly believe in the ever-present reality of God in our historical circumstances. Their fervor for spreading the Gospel (evangelism) is undeniable, including the idea that evangelistic efforts should lead not only to the salvation of souls but also to the transformation of society. Hence, within the Pentecostal tradition it is not uncommon to hear comments like those of Mayor Adams about the necessity of re-instituting certain practices of yesteryear, like prayer in schools.

Inviting Gods Spirit into the mundane, Pentecostals believe, will lead to the needed transformation of society. For Pentecostals, much of the content of Mayor Adams remarks is familiar. Most of them would support his declarations, though some might perhaps take umbrage at the initial remark on the problematic nature of separation of church and state, that Adams subsequently walked back.

The extent of Mayor Adams dependence on Pentecostal thought and practice may end at the idea of Gods continual involvement, and our invitation of Gods involvement in our affairs. For Adams departs from broader Pentecostal practices when it comes to some of his apparent religious practices. For instance, Adams collection of Buddhist statues and his belief that a special energy comes from New York since it sits on a store of rare gems and stones would certainly be considered weird if not heretical by most, if not all, Pentecostals.

In any event, it is clear that the influence of Adams COGIC background continues to permeate much of his worldview.

Adams, considered a moderate-to-conservative Democrat, is not the only elected Democratic official whose political stances are influenced by certain Christian sensibilities. While in New York we can think of a number of former and current elected officials who fit this bill, we can also point to a more national figure who has earned the praise of progressives and moderate Democrats alike.

Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock was raised in the Holiness Church tradition. For him, too, the utterances of Mayor Adams are familiar. Warnocks parents were both pastors and he is also a pastor, serving since 2005 as senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Like me, he is a graduate of Union Theological Seminary and a former student of Dr. Cone, referenced above.

To understand the influence and impact of Warnocks religious sensibilities, one need only revisit his victory speech last November. Warnocks speech was filled with vivid religious language. On a national platform, he unapologetically drew on the language of faith that nourished him and that continues to propel his work. After thanking Georgians, Warnock proclaimed the words that countless Christians have uttered through song and sermons to God be the glory!

I have often said that a vote is a kind of prayer for the world we desire for ourselves and for our children. It is faith put in action. It is the sober recognition that we pray not only with our lips but with our legs, the Senator proclaimed, employing the cadences of the preacher that he is.

Again not shying away from articulating his faith, in another instance Warnock described democracy as the fulfillment of a greater spiritual reality: I believe that democracy is the political enactment of a spiritual idea. The notion that each of us has within us a spark of the divineWe all have value. And if we have value, we ought to have a voice. Accentuating this idea, Reverend Warnock declared what guides his own political philosophythe idea that each of us has within us a spark of the divine, that we were created in imago Dei, in the image of God."

Despite some Christian trajectories that are similar to Adams, the theological and political stances of Warnock are in fact quite distinct. As a Baptist minister, Warnock fiercely defends the principle of the separation of church and state, a stance that Baptists consider a key Baptist distinctive, the idea of which goes back to their origins in England and Holland and were brought over to the beginnings of the U.S. through leaders like Roger Williams.

Furthermore, some of Warnocks progressive stances are in fact driven by a particular theological posture, one indebted to the liberation theology movement. At the heart of this movement is the idea that the plight of the most vulnerable is one that deserves our priority response.

While clearly there are differences between Adams and Warnocks worldviews, one cannot deny that faith has and continues to play a pivotal role in their own political philosophies and work, including as elected officials. And they are not shy about expressing this very fact.

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The Theology of Mayor Eric Adams - Gotham Gazette