More than 100 prominent Black men have signed an open letter warning Joe Biden he “will lose” the election if he doesn’t choose a African American woman as his running mate.
The letter was published Monday in the Atlanta Daily World, the city’s oldest Black newspaper.
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Among those signing the letter — titled #WinWithBlackWomen — were activists, attorneys, ministers and Hollywood insiders, including Sean “Diddy” Combs, Cedric The Entertainer Kyles, Nick Cannon, Will Packer, Omar Epps, Doug E. Fresh, Timothy “Timbaland” Mosley, Jerry “JB Smoove” Angelo Brooks, Al B. Sure!, Bill Bellamy and movie director Deon Taylor.
“As someone who has said throughout the campaign that VP Joe Biden needs to choose a Black woman VP, the urgency for that pick has gone from something that SHOULD happen to something that HAS to happen,” the letter begins. “It disgusts us that Black women are not just being vetted in this VP process but unfairly criticized and scrutinized.”
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The statement also appears to criticize Biden supporters, who were mentioned in a recent CNBC report that said some of the former vice president’s allies and donors have expressed concerns that Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) is too ambitious.
“Was Joe Biden ever labeled ‘too ambitious’ because he ran for president three times? 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?” the letter asks.
It goes on to say that if Biden does not choose a Black woman, he will lose support from Black voters.
“Failing to select a Black woman in 2020 means you will lose the election,” the letter says. “We don’t want to choose between the lesser of two evils and we don’t want to vote the devil we know versus the devil we don’t because we are tired of voting for devils—period.”
Harris is the only potential pick named in the letter. Other Black females mentioned in the media as potential vice presidential candidates include Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), and former national security adviser Susan Rice.
Biden is expected to announce his choice this week.
