She got booed at a Martin Luther King Jr. memorial event.
Even though the event was billed as a rally for an SEIU affiliate celebrating King’s legacy and Clinton was a late-addition [P6: Hmmm...], the less-than-enthusiastic reception was still noteworthy. It took place in Clinton’s backyard and came as she is making extensive efforts to put the kibosh on the racially tinged controversy swirling around her campaign.
NO ONE gets booed at a Martin Luther King Jr. memorial event.
Incidentally, it matters greatly who dealt the race card.
Clinton booed at MLK rally in New York
By: Kenneth P. Vogel
January 14, 2008 04:44 PM EST
NEW YORK, N.Y. — Dogged by continuing racial tensions around her presidential campaign, Hillary Rodham Clinton drew a smattering of boos on Monday when she spoke at a religiously tinged Martin Luther King Jr. rally put together by a union organizing predominantly black security workers.
The catcalls came when Clinton was introduced and her speech drew only tepid applause compared to the boisterous ovations drawn by many of the pastors and reverends — not to mention a hip-hop artist and slam poet — who took the podium before her.
Her participation in the event drew nary a mention during nearly two hours of speeches, performances, prayers and acknowledgments. But she was a late addition to the event — SEIU Local 32BJ President Michael Fishman said he didn't know Clinton would be there until he arrived at the rally. The SEIU affiliate supports Clinton, though a union official stressed that the event was not a Clinton campaign rally.
The New York senator called on the roughly 2,500, mostly black attendees “to fulfill [King’s] unfinished dream and to live the legacy that we have inherited.” Some of her biggest applause came when she cited her rival for the Democratic nomination, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, who had his share of supporters at the event.
“How many of us ever dreamed that we would see the day when a woman and an African-American are running for the presidency of the United States of America?” Clinton asked, referring to herself and Obama.