Today is July 22, the 914th day of the Donald Trump presidency.
I told myself shortly after 45’s inauguration that I wasn’t going to let what he says get to me. I told myself that no matter what outrageous, nasty, bullying and, yes, racist thing he said or tweeted, I would not allow President Donald Trump to spike my anger and fear. It mostly worked. (After all, like most people of color, I am well versed in his documented history of discriminatory actions and biased statements). Still, every now and then, the Oppressor in Chief’s manic musings manage to trigger me, as did his recent tweets and ongoing taunts targeting the four Democratic congresswomen of color, including Massachusetts' own Ayanna Pressley. No more dog whistles. He’s used a loud voice the last several days to vocalize the old racist trope urging them to “go back to their countries.” At one time or another, someone like him has said that to me or my family members; most people of color have heard it before. Congresswomen Ilhan Omar, Rashida Talib, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley are all citizens of this country, but in his eyes, they will never be real Americans.
For his part, the president has been all too eager to expand on his original comments, drawing energy from hardcore supporters like the “send her back” shouters at his North Carolina rally and the Republican Party sycophants who rushed to defend him. And, wholly unconcerned about the millions who are appalled and embarrassed by his naked nativism, instead, President Trump confidently told reporters, “It doesn’t concern me because many people agree with me.” He’s right — many people do agree with him, and that’s what’s impossible for me to dismiss. Of course, I expected the enthusiastic support from the Neo-Nazi publication The Daily Stormer, whose website read, “This is the kind of WHITE NATIONALISM we elected him for…” Especially not so easy for me to dismiss the silence from most Republicans who either know or should know better. And from the ordinary Americans, like the woman interviewed by CBS News who regurgitated the president’s comments, saying, “I don’t know why they won’t just go if they don’t like it here.” This is where we are in 2019.
It’s clear to me that the president’s latest vile word volley is anything but a hit-and-run. Historian Jon Meacham said bluntly the president is preparing for his 2020 reelection campaign by, in his words, “purifying his base,” appealing to the most prejudiced beliefs of white supporters.
Racism’s foundation is ignorance. And as Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. often reminded his followers, “Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” That, plus a wholesale lack of history, has led some to equate four black and brown congresswomen who question America with people who hate America. America’s founders warned against any attempt to silence dissent. As Samuel Adams cautioned, “For true patriots to be silent, is dangerous.”
