Boos, weak cheers greet Clinton at New York rally

NEW YORK -- Boos mixed with weak applause greeted Hillary Clinton yesterday as she turned up at a labour union's celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.

Her appearance had been hastily organized amid the controversy of her remarks last week about the black civil rights leader, and there wasn't even enough time to print her name in the event's program.

But though many said they considered her appearance to be a blatant attempt at damage control, she appeared to succeed in calming her critics as she not only hailed King, but also praised Barack Obama, her chief rival for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks yesterday at the Stand for Security Assembly, a rally in support of New York City security guards and in memory of Martin Luther King Jr.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks yesterday at the Stand for Security Assembly, a rally in support of New York City security guards and in memory of Martin Luther King Jr.

"It's a pleasure to be celebrating Dr. King's life and to be carrying forward his vision," she told the mainly African American membership of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union in New York.

"How many of us ever would have dreamed that we would see the day when a woman and an African-American are running for the presidency of the United States of America?" she added to roaring applause.

Clinton and Obama traded jabs over the weekend as she accused him of injecting racial tension into the contest by "deliberately distorting" what she had said about King's role in the enactment of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

While several black leaders had agreed with Obama that she diminished King's contribution by saying it took president Lyndon Johnson to get the Act passed, Clinton was effusive about the civil rights leader's achievements yesterday.

"We need to be re-committed to Dr. King's dream," she said. "It was a dream that demanded action, and he gave that action every day of his life until he was taken from us."

Clinton was flanked as she spoke by uniformed security guards, some of the lowest-paid workers in the U.S. Only the attendees who had listened to morning news broadcasts knew she'd be at the celebration.

"If she'd been really concerned about our cause, she'd have planned this a long time ago," said Joanne McCray, 46, a security guard in Manhattan.

Obama supporter Teresa Williams accused the New York senator of hypocrisy.

"She may even lose support as people realize she's just cleaning up," said the 32-year-old office cleaner.

But another Obama supporter, former security guard Victor Young, 50, described Clinton's appearance as a "smart move." Saying she's conducting damage control is one way of looking at it, but she definitely engaged the audience," he said.

The local has endorsed Clinton, but she initially turned down its invitation to speak, only recently changing her mind.

"Her schedule changed," Hazel Dukes, president of the New York National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said in an interview after speaking just ahead of Clinton.

"I don't think it is hypocritical for her to come and speak

to her friends. She's been a good friend of 32BJ, and she didn't just make this up to come here."

Obama holds a two-percentage-point lead over Clinton among African Americans in New York City at 42 per cent support, according to a poll conducted for the New York Daily News and released over the weekend. But with 47 per cent in overall support, Clinton leads the Illinois senator by 20 percentage points.