DeRay Mckesson, an Out100 Honoree and an important player behind the Black Lives Matter movement, announced yesterday that he is running for mayor of Baltimore. Mckesson, a Baltimore-native, will campaign as a Democrat.
In a statement, Mckesson wrote:
"We cannot rely on traditional pathways to politics and the traditional politicians who walk that path. We have to challenge the practices that have not and will not lead to transformation."
Mckesson has been widely praised by supporters for shedding a much needed light on police violence around the country. Critics, however, claim him to be against law enforcement and others say he is too much of a celebrity, a sentiment that was raised after he met with Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, and Valerie Jarrett.
No matter the result of Mckesson's run, we believe this to be a significant political step in the right direction, bringing the Black Lives Movement and a youthful vigor for change into a larger governmental landscape.