Hillary Clinton Tells Black Democrats 'This Is a Blast From the Jim Crow Past

HOOVER, Ala. (AP) — Presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton is telling black Alabama Democrats that she'd champion voting rights in the White House. She says Republicans are dismantling the progress of the civil rights movement.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during a meeting of the Alabama Democratic Conference in Hoover, Ala., Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015. (AP Photo/Mark Almond)

Clinton blasted Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley for closing driver's license offices in 31 counties where most residents are African-American. Alabama requires photo identification to vote.

The Democratic front-runner says, "This is a blast from the Jim Crow past."

Clinton also mocked Republican presidential candidates Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush for their opposition to restoring Voting Rights Act provisions the Supreme Court struck down.

About 700 people attended a luncheon for the state's largest black Democratic Party caucus.

African-Americans are crucial to Clinton's campaign. They will likely make up a majority of the Democratic primary electorate in several Southern states.

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