Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang received an endorsement for his New York City mayoral bid from the son of Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Newsweek reports.
In a Youtube video posted on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Martin Luther King III emphasized Yang’s call for a universal basic income as one of the key reasons for his endorsement. “One of my main policy goals, and one of [my dad’s] dreams, was to establish a basic income for all Americans,” King III said. “Andrew’s commitment to a basic income is why I’m endorsing him, and why we’ve worked tirelessly to support Democrats across the country.”
Yang’s basic income proposal for his New York campaign includes the distribution of $1 billion across five different boroughs, targeting low income residents. This proposal differs from the universal basic income policy he campaigned under during his presidential bid because, according to Yang, applying the same policy at the city level would not be feasible, amNewYork reports.
In response to King III’s endorsement, Yang shared the video to his Twitter, stating that they would “do all we can to show that poverty can be eradicated in our time.”
The significance of the endorsement’s timing is also not lost on either King III or Yang. In his endorsement, King III said, “Endorsing Andrew has special meaning for me this weekend. This weekend our nation is celebrating my dad, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I don’t have to tell you how much he advanced racial and economic justice in this country.”
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Yang similarly acknowledged the historical day. “Today, we honor Martin’s father, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the historic work he did to create a more equal America,” he said, amNEwYork reports. “We also recognize that his mission is far from over. The racial wealth gap in this country is staggering, and COVID-19 has only shed more light on the systemic inequalities in our City. I am deeply proud to carry on Dr. King’s vision for a basic income, and with his son standing beside me in this fight, I know we’ll make it a reality.”
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