Economic and social issues are so closely intertwined that they're practically inseparable. It's literally impossible to find an issue that is purely one or the other, both factors play into everything (e.g. a wealthy black person can afford better lawyers to deal with police fuckery, and likely lives in a neighborhood not as aggressively policed in the first place).
"Literally impossible" seems like a hell of a stretch, particularly in your example: a wealthy black person can afford better lawyers to deal with police fuckery, but that's not much consolation if said black person is shot in his car and the officer gets off with a paid vacation. There are so many elements of criminal justice/police reform alone that have little if anything to do with the financial well-being of the system's largely minority victims.
However, I continue to be fucking baffled by responses in the vein of "well free health care won't stop everyone from being racist!" It's like, no shit? I agree? But at least everyone would have healthcare. And it's not like the government can pass legislation that magically gets rid of society's racism. It's a lot easier to legislate people's finances than it is their thoughts.
You're probably baffled because you're imagining a post where I argued against free healthcare because it won't end racism at the same time. I didn't. And you're right, it won't. That's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is that equating economic justice and social justice as one and the same (or so intertwined they may as well be one and the same) does a disservice to the kinds of solutions that many social justice issues actually call for.
You can't legislate people's thoughts, but you can legislate the framework in which those thoughts are executed on. That's the whole point of civil rights legislation: it doesn't stop people from thinking or acting like bigots, but it holds them accountable for their bigotry racism and empowers the victims of bigotry.
You must agree to some extent because you post here:
And while fighting poverty doesn't end racism, it sure makes life easier for many of its victims, and it doesn't exclude other things like fighting for police/criminal justice reform, or immigration reform, or LGBT rights, or equal pay, or Native rights, etc. All things Sanders supports, even if he isn't as vocal about them as I'd like. But that's why I said I don't want him as the sole face of the party.
If the millionaires-and-billionaires stump speech doesn't implicitly cover all of these bases, then clearly that means these issues require separate attention and issues, no?
A rising tide may lift all boats, but if those boats were on uneven elevation in the first place, they'll still be uneven afterward. (I'm positive there's a better way to word this analogy...)