Marianne Williamson on bringing spirituality back into politics

Marianne Williamson on reparations for slavery

Marianne Williamson calls for reparations to be paid to descendants of slaves 01:13

Marianne Williamson, a self-described inspirational author and lecturer, is often characterized as a "spiritual guru" because of her focus on spiritual health, but she thinks that moniker doesn't give her enough credit.

In an interview with CBS News chief Washington Correspondent Major Garrett in this week's episode of "The Takeout" podcast, Williamson said that calling her a "spiritual guru" was "dismissive" and made her seem "like I'm a less intelligent thinker, a little woo-woo."

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Williamson argued that her emphasis on spirituality in her campaign is what made her a strong and viable presidential candidate.

"I think the issue is that politics has swerved," Williamson said, opining that American politics has turned "toxic." "The problem is with an over-corporatized, over-secularized political conversation so disconnected from values, so disconnected from issues of moral and ethical responsibility, as to have broken itself off of the major river of American thought and American life. That's why so many people can't relate to it."

She said that the U.S. is suffering from a "sociopathic economic system" that doesn't value the American worker. She also criticized conservative evangelical Christians for their focus on social issues.

"Jesus was about loving each other. Jesus was about loving the poor and feeding the poor. Jesus was about radical compassion for our fellow human beings," Williamson said. However, she condemned mainstream Democrats for being too dismissive of the power of spirituality and religion.

"Memo to Earth: We're a religious country. And I don't think it has served the Democratic Party at all that it has come to be associated almost with an arrogant and condescending attitude toward people of faith," Williamson said.

Williamson also spoke about some of her policy proposals, including her proposal to institute reparations for African-American descendants of slaves. Her plan calls for $200 - $500 billion for reparations.

"The thing about reparations that I feel is very important, and this goes beyond race based policies, there is an inherent mea culpa, there is an inherent acknowledgement of a wrong that has been done by one people to another and of a debt owed. So reparations carries an emotional and psychological and even and spiritual force," Williamson said.

For more of Major's conversation with Marianne Williamson, download "The Takeout" podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, or Spotify. New episodes are available every Friday morning. Also, you can watch "The Takeout" on CBSN Friday at 5pm, 9pm, and 12am ET and Saturday at 1pm, 9pm, and 12am ET. For a full archive of "The Takeout" episodes, visit www.takeoutpodcast.com. And you can listen to "The Takeout" on select CBS News Radio affiliates (check your local listings).