REV. AL SHARPTON STATEMENT ON PRESIDENT BIDEN’S DECISION TO LEAVE THE 2024 PRESIDENTIAL RACE

—

Jul 21, 2024

New York, NY (July 21, 2024) – Rev. Al Sharpton, the Founder and President of the National Action Network (NAN), issued the following statement on President Biden’s decision to drop out of the 2024 Presidential election. Rev. Sharpton will speak about the decision later today on MSNBC’s PoliticsNation at 5 p.m. ET.

“When Joe Biden first ran for President, he told me he was motivated by the ugliness of neo-Nazis and Klansmen marching in Charlottesville. As ballots got counted up, it became clear that the majority of Americans shared in his disgust. As Biden went on to triumph over a fascist, racist president bent on using the power of his to benefit nobody but himself, Biden went to work fulfilling his promise to heal our nations soul.

This was not the only campaign pledge President Biden followed through on. For the past three and a half years, the White House has made good on almost every single promise he’s made to Black America. Whether it was his executive order on police accountability, answering our call for a summit on the rise of violent hate, or expanding healthcare access through the Inflation Reduction Act, the President heard Black America and acted. That is on top of championing the protection of voting rights. And he did it all against relenting attacks by right-wing MAGA activists.
President Biden has devoted most of his adult life to public service, he had more than paid his dues to our great nation. But he saw what was at stake. This man answered the highest call of his career and saved our fragile democracy from destruction in the process. Our nation is on a better course, especially for Black and Brown Americans, thanks to the work of this Administration.

We cannot forget the reality of a second Trump term is a real threat. The former president has gotten even more dangerous, emboldened by those he put in our nations highest courts. With every hateful rhetoric and constant lies, he exposes his deep desire to use his office to exact revenge against anyone who stood against him and for democracy.
Despite his claims he has nothing to do with Project 2025, it is directly in line with his brand – not to mention the fact it was written by his former appointees, the very people he trusted to advise him throughout his Presidency. Project 2025 is an existential threat to America that will walk us up to the line of the reconstruction era, where Black, Brown, female, and other communities will see their rights withered to nothing. It’s all too clear that Trump wants to turn back the clock, bring the neo-Nazis and Klansmen out of the shadows once again.

Vice President Harris and every Black woman in a seat of power are already under attack. Democrats and all Americans who trust in the fundamentals of democracy, freedom, and equality must put aside their differences to rally behind them. The attacks we have seen will only be supercharged as she prepares to take on Donald Trump this November. Racist, sexist tropes will be deployed to question every action or accomplishment in her life – just as we saw with Claudine Gay earlier this year. We must remember Vice President Harris was elected by the American people to stand ready to serve as the leader not just of her party but this entire nation. We know the playbook, but we also know her track record as a prosecutor, as Senator and now as Vice President. She has also been a staunch ally of the National Action Network.
President Biden has turned to her repeatedly for guidance on the most pressing issues facing our community and her fingerprint is on all of the things that the Biden-Harris Administration has delivered for Black America. It will be imperative for all Americans, especially Black men, to stand with her in this historic moment.”

About National Action Network (NAN)
National Action Network is one of the leading civil rights organizations in the Nation with chapters throughout the entire United States. Founded in 1991 by Reverend Al Sharpton, NAN works within the spirit and tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to promote a modern civil rights agenda that includes the fight for one standard of justice, decency, and equal opportunities for all people regardless of race, religion, nationality, or gender.

For more information go to www.nationalactionnetwork.net.

###