Three ‘Mothers of the Movement’ to campaign for Clinton in NC

Three members of Mothers of the Movement – mothers of African-American men and women who died after encounters with law enforcement officers or due to gun violence – will campaign for Hillary Clinton in North Carolina on Monday and Tuesday

Gwen Carr, the mother of Eric Garner; Geneva Reed-Veal, the mother of Sandra Bland, and Maria Hamilton, the mother of Dontre Hamilton, will speak at events in Fayetteville, Durham, Greensboro and Charlotte.

Their visit to the state will be the first time members of Mothers of the Movement have campaigned on Clinton’s behalf since nine of the mothers spoke at the Democratic National Convention in late July. The group, which includes the mothers of Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin, has endorsed the Democratic nominee, who has said the mothers “belong to a club no one ever wants to join.”

Garner died after being put in a chokehold by police on Staten Island in July 2014. Bland was found hanged in a jail cell in Texas after being pulled over for a minor traffic violation in July 2015. Her family has disputed the medical examiner’s conclusion that her death was a suicide. Hamilton was shot by a police officer in Milwaukee in April 2014.

Their mothers will focus on Clinton’s plans to reform the criminal justice system and her commitment to creating an America that respects the rights of all people, the campaign said.

The speakers will be at N.C. Central Law School in Durham at 4 p.m. Monday. Other stops planned are at Simeon Temple Church in Fayetteville, N.C. Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro and in Charlotte at Goodwill of the Southern Piedmont.

This story was originally published September 18, 2016 at 10:22 AM with the headline "Three ‘Mothers of the Movement’ to campaign for Clinton in NC."