The Democratic Embrace of Al Sharpton The man who embodied New Yorks bad old days of the 1980s now wields influence as never beforeat City Hall and in the White House. By HEATHER MAC DONALD The Rev. Al Sharpton once epitomized New Yorks bad old days of the 1980s, when the then-corpulent, gold-medallion-bedecked tub thumper inflamed racial hatred and courted violence.