Philadelphia Battleground: Biden, Trump make strong push for voters of color
NORTH PHILADELPHIA - Black votes are expected to play a major role in the election of the President of the United States. On Juneteenth in Philadelphia, both campaigns were at work.
In the Black Male Community Council of North Philly, the talk is of the coming presidential election and whether promises have been kept.
Kareem Brown stood in front of the group of some 30 people and said, "If Biden and them aren’t going to give us the resources we need, then the hell with it. Let whatever is going to happen, happen."
Brown, now living in South Jersey, said he grew up in North Philly, and while he’s undecided in the race for the Presidency, he knows what he wants for his loved ones. He said, "I watch my friends and families try to reach for the American dream, but sometimes all of those opportunities are not present. We want to see real opportunities."
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The gathering, organized by the Biden Campaign, was to hear from the community as the campaign works to build enthusiasm among Black voters, while Donald Trump is scheduled to campaign on the Temple campus Saturday evening.
Sharif Street leads the Democratic party in Pennsylvania. He said, "The battle in the Black electorate among Black Democrats is between are they going to vote or stay home? I think his coming here (Trump) actually helps us energize our base."
Inside the newly opened Trump campaign office in Northeast Philly, supporters undergo training and look ahead to the Trump visit. Marco Satchell, of West Oak Lane said, "The snapshots and soundbites are showing Donald Trump going to the hood being among our people and the soundbites saying, ‘I’m going to fight for you guys.’"
Trump’s Black supporters say some voters connect to him through his many legal challenges. James Whitehead, of Philadelphia said, "We see a legal system that isn’t always fair, always right. In the inner-city community, a lot of Black men, they get wrongly accused of crimes they didn’t do."