By Rick Pearson
On a day packed with fundraising events, Democratic presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton also used a visit to Chicago on Monday to meet privately with parents of African-American children who have died from gun violence.
According to her campaign, among those Clinton met with were family members of Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old killed in 2012 by George Zimmerman in Florida. Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain, later was acquitted in the death.
Clinton also met with the family of Jordan Davis, a 17-year-old who was killed in a 2012 shooting that involved complaints he was playing rap music too loud at a Florida gas station. The shooter, Michael Dunn, a 47-year-old white man, was sentenced to life in prison.
Clinton's private meeting at a city cafe underscores Democratic efforts to take on issues of racial justice, community policing and sentencing reform — concerns of African-American voters who are a vital demographic for the party's attempts to keep the White House.
Last week, Clinton rolled out her proposed changes in criminal justice sentencing laws, particularly involving incarceration of African-Americans for nonviolent crimes, in a speech at a historically black university in Atlanta and was interrupted by about 10 members of the Black Lives Matter protest organization.
In an interview with NBC News that aired Monday, President Barack Obama said he hoped his successor also would take up the cause of racial justice.
"I am very proud that my presidency can help to galvanize and mobilize America on behalf of issues of racial disparity and racial justice," he said.
"But, I do so hoping that my successor, who's not African-American, if he or she is not, that they'll be just as concerned as I am because this is part of what it means to perfect our union," he said.
Obama came to his hometown last week and discussed the subject before the International Association of Chiefs of Police convention at McCormick Place. On Monday, Obama was at Rutgers University in New Jersey to continue the discussion about re-integrating nonviolent offenders into society.
It also was a topic discussed Monday in Chicago with Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro at a Northwestern University forum. Castro, who is backing Clinton, is a former mayor of San Antonio and has been frequently mentioned as a potential vice presidential candidate.
Clinton's meeting with families came in the midst of a whirlwind Monday of fundraisers in the Chicago area that marked her fourth trip to her birth city to raise thousands of dollars for her campaign.
She began the day with a reception at the Gold Coast home of Invenergy LLC CEO Michael Polsky and his wife, Tanya, a couple who also have played a major role in Obama fundraising.
Clinton followed that event with a fundraising "conversation" with supportive members of Chicago's legal community at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. She was introduced by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who endorsed her campaign in May before she even officially became a candidate.
She was scheduled to close out the fundraising in Evanston at the home of Eric Janssen, president of Chicago-based Chicago Real Estate Resources Inc. Janssen has been a reliable Democratic donor, giving $104,180 to federal candidates since 2007, when he gave Clinton $2,300 in her unsuccessful presidential bid against Obama.
Hosts of the event included longtime national Democratic donor Fred Eychaner, Chicago Cubs co-owner Laura Ricketts, U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky and Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl, according to an invitation.
Tickets for all events started at $2,700 with perks for those who bundle $27,000.
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