Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has not said if she will run for president in 2020. | Scott Sonner/AP Photo Warren, hinting at 2020 run, slams 'racist' criminal justice system

Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Friday called the criminal justice system “racist … front to back,” while further hinting at a potential presidential run.

“Let’s just start with the hard truth about our criminal justice system,” Warren said at a forum at Dillard University in New Orleans. “It’s racist … I mean all the way. I mean front to back.”


The Massachusetts Democrat, appearing alongside Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Cedric Richmond at the historically black university, faulted a criminal justice system that she said disproportionately jails black people for drug-related crimes. She said public defenders are burdened by a lack of resources and that, once convicted, prisoners are “dehumanized.”

“Our prison system is something that America should be ashamed of,” Warren said.

Warren’s appearance followed a speech to the progressive conference Netroots Nation, which drew Warren and several other high-profile Democrats to New Orleans.

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In a Democratic primary that could feature one or more prominent black politicians, Warren has increasingly sought to connect with black voters. She has forged ties with the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter Bernice King and has addressed the NAACP and other civil rights groups.

Warren has not said if she will run for president in 2020. But Richmond asked her what, if anything, had changed since her decision not to run in 2016, Warren replied, “Two words: Donald Trump.”