WASHINGTON — The chair of this summer's DNC convention is already laying out her case against Republicans — and their convention in Cleveland.
“We do not subscribe to the divisiveness that we’ve seen on the other side,” the Rev. Leah Daughtry said in a phone interview with BuzzFeed News. “They’ve talked about Mexicans being criminals, they [discriminate against] Muslims, and have said women’s health care choices that are legal ought to be punished. That does not reflect who we are as a nation and a people, but certainly not who we are as a party.”
“What the convention will do, I believe is contrast for the American people the chaos in Cleveland," she said. "Then what they will see in Philadelphia is a party of diversity and diverse opinion standing together united behind a vision for America that moves us forward as opposed to taking us backward.”
Women make up more than 60% of the DNCC’s staff, and almost 1 in every 5 staff members is a black woman, according to an aide for the convention. “I’m very pleased that when I walk through the halls of the convention offices I see every segment of the Democratic Party represented,” she said.
(In 2012, 74% of eligible black women voted in the 2012 election. Daughtry said the emphasis on black women — a segment of the Democratic voting population that overwhelmingly supports Hillary Clinton — is a reflection of that dedication to the party, and also a function of working with the voters within the party.)
Daughtry was also the CEO of the 2008 DNC Committee, and served as chief of staff to Howard Dean, the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
While the Republican convention has become a big target for activist protests over corporate participation in light of Donald Trump, the DNC has not been completely without activist scrutiny either. After 2012, Democrats lifted prohibitions on accepting PAC and lobbyist money for this year's convention.