MSNBC host Al Sharpton admonished “latte liberals” who support progressive causes, such as the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, but don’t “change how they do business.”
Sharpton argued while appearing Friday on “Morning Joe” that “the civil rights community” needs to look at those who are throwing money at causes and ask, “Do you practice what you preach?” (RELATED: ‘Because I’m White You Think I’m Racist? That’s BS!’: Eric Bolling Walks Off Heated Live TV Debate)
“I think that the CEOs are looking at their bottom line, and the decisions that they make may enrage a lot of conservative politicians, or Republican politicians,” host Joe Scarborough began. “But you look at how younger Americans have been disaffected from Trumpism and the Republican Party … and they are more progressive post-Trump, whether you’re talking about voting rights, or whether you’re talking about human rights, whether you’re talking about civil rights. That’s just an economic reality.”
Sharpton responded that he agreed it was an economic reality, but that everyone saw corporations getting involved with BLM, and giving “big money” to various causes, after the death of George Floyd in 2020. He added that we’re now seeing corporations take a stand when it comes to voting, citing Major League Baseball’s decision to move the All-Star Game from Atlanta to Denver in response to Georgia’s new election law, which some say is aimed at restricting voting in minority communities.
“What we’re looking at now in the civil rights community … is, well, let’s see if you’re practicing what you’re throwing money at. Let’s look at the corporate suite. How diverse is that? Let’s look at who you do business with. Are you using contractors, or are black asset managers managing your pension funds?” Sharpton continued.
He went on to say that since corporations have now “stepped out there,” they need to do more than just throw money at causes and say to stockholders they’re “on the right side of the issues.” He said they need to ask themselves, “Do you practice what you preach?”
“And I think that’s where we’re going to find out that a lot of latte liberals that have these broken hearts for the homeless sit up with $10 latte coffee drinks and don’t want to change how they do business themselves,” he concluded.