And why should she?
Until the last few months, Tamika Mallory, Linda Sarsour and Carmen Perez had gotten a pass on their anti-Semitism and backing for Farrakhan. It took mountains of work for progressive lefty groups to uneasily start backing away from the Women's March.
In response, the Women's March leadership has dragged out some Jewish (and some Jewface wearing) human shields.
Meanwhile Tamika Mallory has been doing a media tour while refusing to reject Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam. Her usual argument, and the usual argument of other black nationalists in the same boat is, "Look how much good the NOI does."
That same argument wouldn't fly about the KKK or any other racist hate group. Yet, we're supposed to buy the whole, "Mussolini made the trains run on time" routine as long as it comes wrapped in the right racial garb.
So here's Tamika again. Probably after every Women's March sponsor and partner has begged her to dump Farrakhan. But nope.
I often work with young black men in prisons. In this space I find myself working closely with people who have many attitudes, beliefs, and ideas that I disagree with, but the black experience is varied and I have to be open to all of it. To be effective when organizing people who have been discarded by society it does not make sense for me to throw away an organization—like the Nation of Islam—that has been very effective at reaching the hearts and minds of young black men to turning them away from violence.
Other people are obsessed with my relationship with Minister Farrakhan. I am obsessed with empowerment in the black community.
So is Farrakhan.
I'm not sure Malcolm X would agree on how effective the NOI is at turning young men "away from violence". And Calypso Louie keeps fantasizing about a violent civil war.
But Tamika Mallory plays on black stereotypes to defend a violent hate group. She portrays the NOI as turning young men away from violence. Which, in a sense, it does. Farrakhan doesn't like gang violence. He wants to see another kind of violence.
"Here come the Jews. They don't like Farrakhan, so they call me Hitler. Well, that's a good name. Hitler was a very great man."
The real question is how long can black nationalists get away with playing this Farrakhan game?
