Sanders Campaign Adds Young Black Woman As Press Secretary

Symone Sanders was announced as the new national press secretary for Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign Saturday. She is a criminal justice advocate and progressive activist, as well as a supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement.


The announcement came hours after Black Lives Matter protesters shut down a Bernie Sander's rally in Seattle. Sanders first connected with the Vermont senator three weeks ago offering him advice on how to better understand the message of the Black Lives Matter movement.

“One of my suggestions, he took it and ran with it on Meet the Press, is that racial inequality and economic inequality are parallel issues,” she said. "Economic equality is an issue. It’s something we need to address. But for some people it doesn’t matter how much money you make, it doesn’t matter where you went to school, it doesn’t matter what your parents do. It doesn’t matter that Sandra Bland had a job and was on her way to teach for her alma mater. It doesn’t matter. None of that matters.”
After meeting, she was offered a job. Among other duties in her new role, Sanders also helped develop a criminal justice reform policy package that she says is forthcoming from the campaign.

“We’re all doing Black Lives Matter work. Some of us it’s policy, some of us it’s advocacy, some of us it’s activism, but we all have a place,” she said.