Ajamu Baraka in Joint Green Party interview with Stein and Baraka

On Crime: Police violence is symptom of broader system of oppression

"A war is being waged against black people," Baraka said, calling the police the "front line" of the country's oppressive system. He said the criminalization and violence black people had seen is the result of an economic system that had marginalized them. "In the larger economy, we have become the problem people that (W.E.B.) du Bois talked about," Baraka said. "The way you deal with a problem people now, you police them, you incarcerate them, you kill them."

On Principles & Values: "Uncle Tom" Obama did not live up to historic opportunity

Baraka did not demure when confronted with his more strident comments about Obama, like calling him an "Uncle Tom": "If we were concerned and serious about how we could displace white power, we had to demystify the policies and the positions of this individual," Baraka said, referring to his attempt to "shock" people out of faith in Obama's transformative potential. He conceded that his language sounded "inflammatory" to some, but said, "I stand by that."