A prominent black Detroit pastor slammed Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris for "virtue signaling" and "exploiting" his community, saying that "black men are not political infants."
"We will not allow virtue signaling. We will not allow identity politics. Black men are not political infants," Pastor Lorenzo Sewell of Detroit’s 180 Church said during an appearance on Fox & Friends, referring to Harris’s recent outreach to black voters. "We know exactly what's happening with the Democratic Party. We know that they've exploited us for over six decades, and we are saying, just like Moses said to Pharaoh, ‘Let my people go.’"
Sewell’s remarks come in response to Harris’s planned interview Tuesday evening with black podcaster and comedian Lenard Larry McKelvey, known professionally as Charlamagne tha God, in Detroit. The interview is part of Harris's campaign effort to regain support from black men in a key swing state as recent polls indicate her backing is slipping.
"I have never been so offended in my life," Sewell said. "She's bringing a man here who is Charlamagne, a false god, to a community that has 4,500 churches, all people of faith. We are extremely offended that she's bringing a podcaster here to talk to black men about politics."
The Detroit pastor also criticized two other high-profile events the Harris campaign organized in recent weeks to bolster support among black voters in Michigan.
"She brought a retired athlete to Flint who is failing—Magic Johnson—and she brought Oprah to Oakland County, as if she understands the plight and the playing of people that look like me," Sewell said.
"[Harris] continues to think that she can entertain her way to the black vote," Sewell continued. "We’re offended, and we want her to be willing to actually bring real solutions to the complex problems that we're facing in urban America."
The Harris campaign’s recent push to engage the black community comes as polls show Harris losing support among the demographic. Harris now holds 78 percent of the black vote, down from President Joe Biden’s 90 percent in 2020 and Hillary Clinton’s 92 percent in 2016, according to a New York Times poll released Saturday.
The polling reveals a steeper drop among black men, with 70 percent indicating they would vote for Harris in November, down from Biden’s 85 percent.
Harris dismissed the unfavorable poll during a Monday interview with the black-focused entertainment outlet The Shade Room.
"One, that's not my experience. Two, Election Day has not arrived yet," Harris said.