Excited students, faculty, community members and press filled the Amphitheater on Friday evening as they awaited presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders to take the stage.
Sanders and staff came to Winthrop to get students and locals informed about his policies and his campaign. Students were given bumper stickers, banners, and t-shirts free of charge as they entered the rally, which was sponsored by the Winthrop University College Democrats. Some students were given wristbands to be on stage behind the speakers and Sanders.
The event began with Ernest Boston, state field director who also accompanied Sanders on his 2016 campaign, spoke on the importance of having a voting plan.
Joshua Alicea, president of Winthrop’s Political Science Honor Society and chief of staff at Winthrop’s College Democrats spoke to the crowd.
“The road to the White House goes through Winthrop University,” Alicea said.
Certain candidates, like Barack Obama and Donald Trump, who later became presidents shared coming to Winthrop during their campaigns, Alicea said. He hoped the rally and others like it will make students become better informed citizens, as local rallies provide students with better access to the campaigns.
Dr. Cornel West, professor of public philosophy at Harvard University and author hyped the crowd and spoke of Sanders’ credibility. West said those in the Bible thought to be the “least of the” were the exact people Sanders hopes to represent as president.
“[Sanders] Looks at the world through the lens of everyday people,” West said. This is what sets Sanders apart from his competition, he said.
Danny Glover, actor and political activist, quoted Mark Twain in reference to Sanders’ campaign.
“Courage is resistance to fear.” Glover spoke on the importance of Sen. Sanders campaign and how important this election was.
Phillip Agnew, co-founder of Smoke Signal Studio and activist spoke, led the crowd in a chant of what he thinks Americans should demand: “power, transformation and love.”
Sanders took stage to welcoming cheers and spoke on his plans to cancel student debt for all students. He plans to make this and his “Medicare for all” plan happen with the general tax base. He speaks of Trumps administration and the tax breaks given to the 1% million and more dollars to help them why can’t the same happen with student debt.
“This is not the kind of America that we have to live in,” says Sanders. “If you stand together, if you do not allow Trump and his friends to divide us up…if we stand together around an agenda that works for all of us, we can accomplish huge things,” Sanders said.
Sanders talked about his plans to combat climate change.
“We have a president who thinks climate change is a hoax. I think that Trump is a hoax,” Sanders said in response to how the Trump administration has reacted to climate change.
Sanders explained further that now scientists have proven that if action is not taken now the effect our country alone has inflicted on the earth cannot be undone.
Sanders expressed his intent to legalize marijuana and was met with applause from the audience.
“We’re going to decriminalize and legalize the possession of marijuana in this country,” Sanders said. If elected, Sanders said he would also expunge the records of anyone who has been arrested for possession of marijuana.
As president, Sanders said he would make it easier for workers to join unions, as union workers make higher wages. Sanders voiced his passion for raising the minimum wage across the nation to at least $15 an hour instead of the current “starvation wage” of $7.25. Seven states have already implemented a $15 or higher minimum wage policy.
He spoke of plans to reform the immigration system, to not take children from their mothers and to grant citizenship to those in the DACA program. Sanders said his main goal for this campaign is not to beat Trump, but to make change happen as president.
Freshman elementary education major, Courtney Robertson, had a few concerns as a future educator. She hopes Sanders addresses the inequalities in teaching since it is a predominantly female field. Robertson said the biggest competition in her opinion for the democratic seat would be Julián Castro.
Shaunta Sinclair, an educator from Charlotte, found out about the rally through Facebook. Sinclair has been an educator in South Carolina for 20 years. Sinclair has not chosen a candidate yet but likes what Sanders has had to say. She said that Sanders’ ticket would be strong and thinks Elizabeth Warren is his biggest competition, but would be a good running mate.
John Rice, a junior computer science major, expressed concerns within his field of study. Rice hopes Bernie will address workers’ rights in the technology industry. He is concerned as he will be graduating into a projected recession, directly affecting him as a new graduate.
Audrey Atkinson, a junior early childhood education major, attended the event with friends. Atkinson’s biggest concerns as an education major is her right to feel safe in the workplace in response to mass shootings in schools. She wants the candidate she votes for in 2020 to make change in the American education system.
Sanders ended with an inspirational message to students that their vote and voice matters in the future of the country.
“You are enormously powerful people if you choose to exercise that power. The future of this country and the world rests with you,” Sanders said.
I just read your post. I’m really surprised that AOC just endorsed Bernie Sanders! I wasn’t expecting that endorsement after his heart attack. Wild times we live in.