"Black Lives Matter" activist overtook an event in Seattle on Saturday where Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders was scheduled to speak.

The Associated Press reports Sanders never made it to the podium at Westlake Park, and ultimately, demonstrators calling for immediate change within the criminal justice system took over the stage. Later that night, Sanders did address an overflow crowd on the campus of the University of Washington about his commitment to criminal justice reform and the issue of income equality.

As for the issues directly raised by protesters, Sanders later told the audience of more than 12,000 at Hec Edmundson Pavilion, "No president will fight harder to end institutional racism and reform criminal justice system. Too many lives have been destroyed by war on drugs, by incarceration; we need to educate people. We need to put people to work."

Earlier in the day, Sanders was just starting to engage the crowd of several thousand gathered side-by-side at Westlake, when two women commandeered the microphone. Organizers tried to persuade the two to wait their turn to speak, but after overtaking the stage, the women talked about Ferguson and the killing of Michael Brown before breaking into a prolonged moment of silence.

After about 20 minutes of waiting and being shoved further back on the stage, Sanders waved goodbye to the crowd and made for the exit with a raised fist salute.

It's not the first time that "Black Lives Matter" demonstrators have disrupted an event where the liberal Vermont senator was to be among the featured speakers. At a town hall for Democratic presidential candidates in Phoenix last month, protesters affiliated with the movement took over the stage, and disrupted an interview with Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley.

As part of his platform, the 73-year-old Sanders has primarily focused on issues like the middle class, climate change and criminal justice reform. In addition to advocating a $15 minimum wage and raising taxes on the rich, he also vehemently supports a massive government-led jobs program to fix roads and bridges, a single-payer health care system, an expansion of Social Security benefits, and debt-free college.