Against being blinded by Trump’s pardons: Trump isn’t for Black folks
By Victor Ochieng
Everyone has been talking about President Trump after he pardoned a 63-year-old grandmother who was serving a life sentence for a non-violent drug offense. This follows Kim Kardashian’s persistent effort towards helping the 63-year-old, Alice Marie Johnson.
To advocate for the release of Johnson, Kardashian met the President to personally talk about the pardon. And when the pardon finally came, Kardashian gave the grandmother a call-in prison to break the good news.
This news that is now making headlines has attracted different sentiments, with some people appreciating what the President did and others crediting Kardashian for the clemency. One very notable comment came from Professor Michael Eric Dyson, who while speaking in an interview with TheGrio, said, “I love Kim Kardashian, she’s a wonderful woman, and the woman she’s speaking on behalf is great. But is [Johnson] getting out of jail worth– in terms of the PR that Donald Trump might be able to get from her visit– the kind of photo op that suggests that even people of color are attracted to him? Or women married to people of color are attracted to him?”
The professor advised that anyone planning to meet with the president shout take the opportunity to talk straight with him. He vehemently insists that the Black community shouldn’t be fooled by the President. He pointed out that President Trump is not for the Black Americans. He further explained that, “He’s trying to manipulate Black sentiment in his favor. Before Donald Trump became president, he was being cited in rap lyrics and it was cool to be with the Donald. Space”
Dyson spoke about President Trump’s recent public statement, where he boasted of having an increased number of “Black Vote” as a result of support from the West family. He publicly boasted of the increasing number of boast when the actual figures did not represent the whole African American community. He said at the National Rifle Association that, “Kanye West must have some power because you probably saw I doubled my African American poll numbers. We went from 11 to 22 in one week.”
However, an analysis by CNN brought to question how a sample size of 200 people can be used to determine the views of the African Americans.
These statements from the President did not please professor Dyson either. He clarified that he was not suggesting that no African American should visit Trump; only that people should not shy away from telling him the truth. “I’m not saying you can’t meet with Donald Trump. If you want to meet with Donald Trump tell him the truth though. Understand that you are becoming complicit in a white supremacist ideology that has been perpetuated… You can be a white supremacist in brown skin or Black skin.”
Dyson said that Trump is no longer the man that used to be featured in rap music, and that his facade should not be taken to heart. In his interview, he said, “Now he’s the president. This am not your homeboy. This is a guy who is doing public policy that is hurting your people.”
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