Samaria Rice Explains Why She Did Not Appear with the Mothers of the Movement at the DNC

When the "Mothers of the Movement" took the stage at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, their pain was palpable. Together stood the mothers of Trayvon Martin, Dontre Hamilton, Sandra Bland, Jordan Davis, and Hadiya Pendleton as chants of "Black Lives Matter" filled the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The women raised their voices to encourage viewers to vote for Hillary Clinton in November.

“This isn’t about being politically correct,” Sybrina Fulton told the crowd. “This is about saving our children.”

Noticeably absent was the mother of Tamir Rice. The 12-year-old was killed by police in Cleveland, Ohio in November 2014.

In an interview with Terrell Starr for Fusion, Samaria Rice explained why she wasn't on stage; she won't be endorsing a candidate in the presidential election.



She told Fusion that she needs candidates to more explicitly address the un-prosecuted police violence. Candidates would have to convince her of their commitment before she went on the stump, "I think that would make me feel better, and no candidate has did that for me yet.”

But Rice doesn't fault the women who've come out in support of Clinton. She says she counts them as friends.

“I hope they going to hold her accountable for whatever discussions they had behind closed doors,” she told me," she said.

Now Rice focuses her efforts on organizing and activism against police brutality.


Photo: Andrew Burton/Getty Images