Wayne Messam, the Democratic presidential candidate and mayor of Miramar, Fla., on Thursday criticized 2020 rival Pete ButtigiegPete ButtigiegScaled-back Pride Month poses challenges for fundraising, outreach Biden hopes to pick VP by Aug. 1 It’s as if a Trump operative infiltrated the Democratic primary process MORE over his past\u00a0remark that “all lives matter,” which Messam said\u00a0lacks a “true understanding of the issue at hand.”<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the comments lack true understanding of the issue at hand. Black Americans have organized all across this country because we have an unequal justice system, not because anyone demands special privileges,” Messam said in a statement.<\/p>\n
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“\u2018Black lives matter\u2019\u00a0doesn\u2019t mean that all lives do not matter, rather it\u00a0is a cry for equal treatment in the greater circle of justice for all Americans,” he continued. “This is an important issue and we should not muddy the water as Democrats.”<\/p>\n
Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Ind., said in 2015 that “all lives matter” while\u00a0addressing\u00a0two controversies involving the local police in South Bend, according to CNBC.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no contradiction between respecting the risks that police officers take every day in order to protect this community and recognizing the need to overcome the biases implicit in a justice system that treats people from different backgrounds differently, even when they are accused of the same offenses,\u201d Buttigieg reportedly said in the speech,\u00a0which has since resurfaced.<\/p>\n