Analysis

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This Is What the Fight Against Trumpism Looks Like

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 Dispatches from the Urban Resistance, April edition.

BY JIMMY TOBIAS – THE NATION

 ... while you’re perusing the electoral scene, pay attention to Philadelphia too, where Larry Krasner, a long-time civil rights attorney and first amendment defender, is shaking up a seven-person Democratic primary to be the city’s next top prosecutor. If he wins, Krasner has said he will stop imprisoning people who can’t pay bail, effectively abolish the death penalty, maintain Philadelphia’s sanctuary city commitments, and prohibit prosecutions based on “illegal stop and frisk” tactics. The bespectacled progressive has been endorsed by national organizations like Our Revolution, Color of Change, and Democracy for America. The primary will take place on May 16.

Full story in THE NATION

The Philadelphia spring: One city’s wide-open DA race is a microcosm of the anti-Trump resistance

All resistance is local: Bernie Sanders and Tom Perez should stop in Philly to see progressives' power on display

SALON

Something interesting is happening in Philadelphia, where the race for district attorney this spring is a tight and unpredictable one. With incumbent Seth Williams not seeking re-election after corruption allegations and federal charges, the field is wide open. The only thing that we know for sure is that the person who wins the Democratic primary on May 16 will almost certainly be the city’s next DA. In candidate forums, all seven Democratic contenders seem to have one favorite word: reform. 

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Krasner overwhelms primary opponents in Philadelphia 3.0 poll

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Krasner overwhelms primary opponents in Philadelphia 3.0 poll

District Attorney candidate Larry Krasner "decisively" won an online poll by the civic reform group Philadelphia 3.0, the group announced today.

More than half of the participants selected Krasner out of a field of seven candidates as their top choice. Although this was not a scientific poll of voters overall, this result indicates that Krasner is performing extremely well with some of the city's most well-informed voters.

Attytood: Lynne Abraham shouldn't throw stones

DAILY NEWS (COLUMN)

... Philadelphia voters are going to the polls next month in a Democratic primary that will be critical for picking Williams' successor. Almost all of the candidates want to swing the pendulum away from the "convictions at any cost" culture that permeated the Abraham years, and surely no one want to bring back such zealous pursuit of the death penalty. That's all good, but the raft of questionable convictions from the past presents a challenge for any future DA.

Last week, after I wrote about Lowenstein's Ogrod book, one of those candidates — the civil rights lawyer Lawrence Krasner — issued a statement in which he said "it is clear that for decades the practice and policy of the District Attorney’s Office has been to win convictions at any cost, too often at the cost of justice itself." He called for a number of concrete steps including the courtroom use of confessions only if they are videotaped, an end to the death penalty, and refusing to prosecute cases when the evidence developed by police is clearly lacking.

Here’s What’s Behind the Sharp Left Turn in Philly’s District Attorney Race

Here’s What’s Behind the Sharp Left Turn in Philly’s District Attorney Race

PHILADELPHIA MAGAZINE

Krasner is a civil rights attorney known for doing battle with police unions and defending the First Amendment rights of protesters ... Krasner simply wouldn’t have been a viable district attorney candidate a few years ago. He threatens the status quo as much as do Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. But he has grassroots support. ... the district attorney’s race may be a referendum on whether Philadelphia wants to be a progressive city or a Democratic one.

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Meet the Blackest White D.A. Candidate Ever

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THE PHILADELPHIA TRIBUNE (COLUMN)

I initially didn’t feel comfortable with the idea of endorsing a white guy for the top elected law enforcement position in a city that’s nearly 50 percent Black.

But Larry’s no ordinary white guy. Quite the contrary, he’s the Blackest white guy I know. When it comes to candidates for political office, they shouldn’t tell the Black community what they’re gonna do for us. Instead, they should show us what they’ve already done. And Larry’s done a lot. A whole lot.

Here are three (of numerous) reasons why the Black community should vote for him:

Learn more about Larry's campaign for a progressive Philadelphia

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