Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders plans to participate in a presidential forum this Friday in north Minneapolis on issues facing black America, according to the group organizing the event. Hillary Clinton was invited but her campaign said she's not able to attend.

The non-profit Minnesota Neighborhoods Organizing for Change will hold what it's calling a "Presidential Forum on Black America." It's to take place Friday afternoon at the Capri Theater on West Broadway Ave., with the exact time still in flux as of Monday.

Becky Zosia Dernbach, communications director for the group, said Monday that Sanders has committed to participating. A spokesman for the Sanders campaign was not immediately able to confirm his planned attendance.

Both Sanders, a U.S. senator for Vermont, and former Secretary of State Clinton are scheduled to be in Minneapolis that day for a DFL fundraising dinner, where they are both speaking. The two are locked in an increasingly competitive race for the Democratic nomination.

"Due to Secretary Clinton's schedule, she regretfully will not be able to attend the forum," said Alexandra Fetissoff, spokeswoman for Clinton in Minnesota. "Hillary Clinton has met with activists in the Black Lives Matter movement and other advocates, community members, and stakeholders throughout this campaign to inform her policies and plans to create a more equal America."

Neighborhoods Organizing for Change describes itself as "a grassroots, member-led organization building power in under-resourced communities and communities of color across the Twin Cities."