In California, Hillary Clinton's Strategy Depends on Black Voters

Just as important as the delegate count are the emotions and issues shaping the electorate, as was evident at the rally. For many, the move from South L.A. to the Inland Empire was not an escape. Housing costs are rising in the Inland Empire. Public transportation and health care is poor. And the area, among the hardest hit by the recession’s unemployment and housing collapse, is just recovering. Unemployment is a serious problem. Black joblessness is double that of whites. Former Los Angeles City Councilwoman Jan Perry, now an economic development official in Mayor Eric Garcetti’s administration, told me that when she is making phone calls for Clinton, people talk about jobs. “They want to know about jobs, how the economy is going,” she said as we chatted before the rally began. “This a voter-rich area. I did the phone bank thing. The majority of people had voted already. I called 20 pages [of names]. One person was for Bernie, and one wouldn’t say. I think it will be a much higher turnout than they think. I think she will win this.” I walked around the courtyard area. Hot dogs were grilling. People were dancing, waiting for the program to begin. Music filled the courtyard, and the sound extended to the busy boulevard. Notebook in hand, I sought out people who looked as though they wouldn’t mind an interview and introduced myself to Angela Adams, who retired from the Army after 30 years in the reserves, four of them in Operation Desert Storm and Iraq. She’s now with the city housing authority, working on the Section 8 program, which seeks to provide housing for the poor. “I think it’s going great,” she said. “I’m going to vote for her. She’ll push for the working woman. She’s a working woman.” We talked about Clinton’s emails, too. “Maybe she did the wrong thing, but let’s move on,” she told me. She joined several other veterans when Waters asked them to step up. There were shouts from the audience of “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!” The positive spirit was impressive. I sat in the audience while everyone bowed their heads, held hands with the person next to them and prayed for victory. I thought their prayers might help. They can’t hurt. But with the election just days away, I’d count more on Rep. Maxine Waters’ corps of workers campaigning from South L.A. to the Inland Empire. Your support matters…

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