Cornel West chooses college professor, BLM co-founder as VP running mate

April 10 (UPI) -- Academic and activist Cornel West on Wednesday chose a college professor as his running mate for his far-left, independent 2024 presidential campaign.

West chose California State University Professor Melina Abdullah as his vice president candidate.

"I wanted someone whose heart, mind and soul is committed to the empowerment of poor and working people," West said. "She has a record of deep commitment and investment in ensuring poor and working people are at the center of her vision."

Abdullah said in a statement, "I am deeply honored and humbled to join Dr. Cornel West as his vice presidential candidate at this critical moment as we work together for transformative change. This campaign offers a real vision for the world that stands in opposition to oppressive forces and holds fast to the universal principles of truth, justice, and love."

She is a racial justice advocate and a founding member of the Black Lives Matter movement.

The West campaign said in a statement that Abdullah supports its pillars of transformative justice, gender justice, racial justice, worker justice and education justice.

West's campaign cited Abdullah's leadership in the Black Lives Matter movement as proof of her commitment to policy changes aligned with his independent presidential campaign.

West's campaign focuses on empowerment and protection for poor and working-class Americans. The campaign said in a statement that it seeks "to empower poor and working people everywhere."

"Our aim is and will always be to unite in solidarity with movements of truth and justice, who seek a choice beyond empire, white supremacy, capitalism, patriarchy, and the confines of the corporate-dominated two-party system," a Wednesday campaign statement said.

With the margins of support between Biden and former president Trump being so close, some Democrats are worried that the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and West candidacies may help Trump win in November.

The Democratic National Committee adviser Ramsey Reid said in February, "It's pretty clear that Trump and his megadonors are propping up RFK Jr. as a stalking horse."

Cornel West is a former Harvard University professor and Professor Emeritus at Princeton who has written 20 books.