Sharpton: Do not judge Sanders by 'socialist tag'

(26 Feb 2020) Rev. Al Sharpton is reminding black voters in South Carolina that civil rights leaders faced the same political flak for being alleged socialists that Bernie Sanders, a democratic socialist, faces today. Sharpton, who hosted a half-dozen Democratic presidential hopefuls Wednesday morning at a ministers' breakfast sponsored by his National Action Network, made his observation before introducing Sanders.   Noting that Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was also criticized as a socialist while fighting for voting rights and other critical issues to the black community, Sharpton urged attendees to research that history.   "They accused Dr. King of being a communist. Every major leader in the 60s, they tried to call socialists or communists," Sharpton said. "Whatever you decide to do on Saturday, do not go by those that use the socialist tag to try to separate us from what we need to do for this country. Because we've been down that road before and we are not that stupid to allow you to tell us who is what," he added. Sanders told the audience that he was proud to support former President Barack Obama twice for president and slammed President Donald Trump as a "homophobe," "xenophobe" and a "religious bigot." The current Democratic front runner told the crowd it is their "moral imperative" to defeat "the most dangerous president in the modern history of this country." Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...