

(NNPA)—To the Campaign: I am writing as a concerned Sanders supporter. I am thrilled that the campaign has caught on as it has. Senator Sanders has raised many of the issues that need to be raised, which are generally ignored by the political establishment. He is correct to be challenging the political and economic elites that are dominating this country and, for that matter, much of the world. I am certainly hoping that Senator Sanders receives the nomination and handily wins the November 2016 Presidential election.

That said, I am deeply concerned that the campaign is missing tremendous opportunities, particularly when it comes to communities of color. Here’s an example.

The noted writer, Ta-Nehisi Coates has recently published a stinging critique of Senator Sanders on the question of reparations to African Americans. Leaving aside differences on the issue, what particularly struck me was the final paragraph of the article. Coates indicated that he had reached out to the campaign and was ignored. How does anyone ignore a writer of such significance as Coates? This is someone who has raised many an eyebrow with his incisive writing on the Black experience and has accumulated quite a following.