--- title: Black Lives Matter Activist Confronts Clinton at Fundraiser description: "Can you apologize to black people for mass incarceration?” canonical: https://time.com/4237111/black-lives-matter-hillary-clinton-protest/ author: Julia Zorthian article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-02-25T16:46:08.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:41:18.224Z article:section: Politics og:title: Black Lives Matter Activist Confronts Clinton at Fundraiser og:description: "Can you apologize to black people for mass incarceration?” og:url: https://time.com/4237111/black-lives-matter-hillary-clinton-protest/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1d2c683b8efc69a6/69887f248e060113e8464c5c/clinton-charleston-black-lives-matter-activist.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 7360 og:image:height: 4140 og:image:alt: clinton charleston black lives matter activist og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Black Lives Matter Activist Confronts Clinton at Fundraiser twitter:description: "Can you apologize to black people for mass incarceration?” twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1d2c683b8efc69a6/69887f248e060113e8464c5c/clinton-charleston-black-lives-matter-activist.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Black Lives Matter Activist Confronts Clinton at Fundraiser > Sponsored content. 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Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=6335a9cc-df57-478d-89c5-cae7058ee685&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: TIME Raw: Watch Black Lives Matter Activist Confront Clinton [Watch (HLS stream): TIME Raw: Watch Black Lives Matter Activist Confront Clinton](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/N0TomwBE.m3u8) (0:46)  _Published 2016-02-25_  by [Julia Zorthian](https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Feb 25, 2016 4:46 PM UTC  by [Julia Zorthian](https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Feb 25, 2016 4:46 PM UTC A Black Lives Matter activist [confronted Hillary Clinton](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/clinton-black-lives-matter-south-carolina%5Fus%5F56ce53b1e4b03260bf7580ca) at an event Wednesday night, demanding that the Democratic presidential candidate address remarks she made on criminal justice in the 1990s. Clinton was speaking about [Walter Scott’s death](http://time.com/3774788/south-carolina-police-shooting-video/) during a private fundraiser in Charleston, S.C. when [Ashley Williams](http://www.museumofthenewsouth.org/media-center/blog/ask-an-activist-ashley-williams), an activist who reportedly paid $500 to attend the event, stepped forward with a sign that read, “We have to bring them to heel,” quoting a speech that Clinton gave in 1996\. Clinton stopped speaking to read the sign aloud, before telling Williams they would “talk about it,” the _Huffington Post_ reports. “I’m not a Superpredator, Hillary Clinton,” Williams answered, repeating a word Clinton used in a 1996 speech to describe kids with “[no conscience, no empathy](http://www.salon.com/2016/02/25/im%5Fnot%5Fa%5Fsuperpredator%5Fhillary%5Fblack%5Flives%5Fmatter%5Fprotestors%5Fcrash%5Fclinton%5Fsouth%5Fcarolina%5Ffundraiser/)” who committed crimes. “Can you apologize to black people for mass incarceration?” The brief exchange was [caught on video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqLfvQfuvsA). As Clinton replied to Williams’ questions by saying, “Nobody has ever asked me before. You are the first person to ask me and I am happy to address it,” Secret Service members were already removing Williams from the event. The quote comes from remarks Clinton gave at a January 1996 event at Keene University in New Hampshire on behalf of her husband’s re-election campaign. During a discussion of major challenges of the Clinton Administration, she referenced anti-gang efforts ([watch here](http://www.c-span.org/video/?c4582393/hillary-clinton-jan-25-1996-speech)): --- > “” --- Coined by Princeton University political scientist John DiIulio Jr., the term “superpredator” was a popular description in the mid 1990s for a kind of remorseless and violent young criminal that many predicted would soon overwhelm the country. In fact, as [a recent New York _Times_ story](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/07/us/politics/killing-on-bus-recalls-superpredator-threat-of-90s.html?%5Fr=0) noted, violent crimes committed by youths dropped dramatically shortly afterward, but not before waves of legislation passed to try younger Americans as adults. Clinton has been criticized for her support of the 1994 crime bill that her husband signed. The bill has since been [widely denounced for contributing to the mass incarceration](http://www.npr.org/2014/09/12/347736999/20-years-later-major-crime-bill-viewed-as-terrible-mistake) of black men. Her rival for the Democratic nomination, Bernie Sanders, has similarly been [criticized for voting for the bill](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/02/12/1994-crime-bill-haunts-clinton-and-sanders-as-criminal-justice-reform-rises-to-top-in-democratic-contest/) as a member of the House. \[[_The Huffington Post_](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/clinton-black-lives-matter-south-carolina%5Fus%5F56ce53b1e4b03260bf7580ca)\] ## Transcript Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders battle for the black vote has dominated headlines ahead of this weekends South Carolina primary. Both candidates ramping up their outreach as Clinton enjoys a commanding lead with this key group. But at a private event last night in Charleston, Clinton's past stance on crime came under scrutiny from a Black Lives Matter activist, Ashley Williams To ensure that South Carolina became the first state with body cameras. There is more work to be done but gotta lay down these markers, you gotta build toward a common sense of-- We've got somebody saying here. We have to bring home to heel. We want you to apologize for mass incarceration. Okay we'll talk about it. I'm not a super predator, Hillary Clinton. Okay fine, we'll talk about it. Can you apologize to black people for mass incarceration ? >> Well can I talk? Yes. And then maybe you can listen to what I have to say. You called black people super predators. And about. You're being rude. [ CROSSTALK ] Super predators, that's rude. This is not appropriate. That's rude. Do you want to hear the facts or do you just want to talk? You're trespassing. I know that you called black youths super predators in 1994. 1994. Please explain your record. Explain it to us! You owe black people an apology! 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