Pete Buttigieg says he's obligated 'with the privilege of whiteness' to speak out on systemic racism

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South Bend mayor and 2020 hopeful Pete Buttigieg has continued his efforts to try to reach out to black voters in a new fundraising email, where he says he welcomes the "obligation as a candidate with the privilege of whiteness on my side" to speak out against systemic racism.

In the Friday email shared by Politico reporter Daniel Strauss, Buttigieg began by commemorating the 171st anniversary of the Seneca Falls Convention, the first women's rights convention in the U.S., and praised historic attendees Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucretia Mott, who he credits for paving the way to help women earn the right to vote, own property, and run for political office. He also expressed that he's "proud" to be running "alongside half a dozen formidable women."

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"But for all our progress, we know that the work set in motion in 1848 remains unfinished today," Buttigieg wrote. "We have not yet fully realized the promise of Seneca Falls when decisions about reproductive freedom are dictated by male politicians, or when women are still not paid as the same as a man, whether that's a factory worker or a member of the women's national soccer team."

The 37-year-old candidate stressed that women of color especially "remain disproportionately disadvantaged."

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"As vital as it is for women in this country to lead the way, it is also important for people from every walk of life stand up for each other," Buttigieg explained. "It's why, as a man running for president, it is particularly important in this campaign to be outspoken about women's equality."

He continued: "It's why I welcome my obligation as a candidate with the privilege of whiteness on my side to speak about systemic racism in this country. That includes putting forward a Douglass Plan to empower the women and men of Black America, named in honor of a Black man who made common cause with the women of America."