The Upside Down

A history reminder – it seems needed.

Between 200,000 and 500,000 demonstrators march down Constitution Avenue during the March on Washington, Aug. 28, 1963. HULTON ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES

“Trump said in an interview that he believed civil rights-era protections resulted in white people being “very badly treated,” his strongest indication that the concept of “reverse discrimination” is driving his aggressive crusade against diversity policies.” (New York Times, January 12)

What lead us to this place in history is the evidence that Trump’s statement is provably false and serves no more than to placate the butt-hurt who think Black people have taken what they perceived as ‘theirs.’

Black people, and people of color, have suffered – and continue to suffer – from hate on the part of white Americans instilled at the beginning of our country’s formation; it continues today. This is evident in the ICE efforts to remove undocumented people by selective removal and the voices of white supremacists which became louder in the first Trump administration and have been further amplified in the past year.

The struggle for rights.

The elder members of society will remember learning about or experiencing the 1950s-1960s struggles for civil rights. Segregation, discrimination and disenfranchisement were rampant across the country. The struggles to attempt to end this were long and often a violent and blooded period in our history. Starting with 1954’s Brown vs. the Board of Education decision to end school segregation and including other such memorable efforts including the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Little Rock Nine’s integration of Central High in 1957, the first Civil Rights act was passed that year.

Sit-ins, freedom rides, and marches, notably the March on Washington where Dr. Martin Luther King orated his well-known “I Have a Dream” speech, were followed by 1964’s Civil Rights Act. The Selma to Montgomery March, called “Bloody Sunday” was followed by the Voting Rights Act and, finally, in 1968, the year Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated, the Fair Housing Act passed.

For a time, it felt like some aspects of racial hate were lessening. However, as Black Americans well know, housing discrimination, policing and bias still were well in view while other racist efforts went virtually underground.

White supremacy is on the rise.

This past year, since the start of Trump 2, we have seen people like Charlie Kirk and Nick Fuentes brought to the fore. Many believe that Kirk’s quote, “Happening all the time in urban America, prowling Blacks go around for fun to go target white people, that’s a fact. It’s happening more and more,” along with many others along the same line, are true. Fuentes, along with his anti-gay, misogynistic commentary, made this statement: “Enough with the Jim Crow stuff. Who cares? ‘Oh, I had to drink out of a different water fountain.’ Big f—ing deal...oh no, they had to go to a different school...And even if it was bad, who cares?...it was better for them, it’s better for us.”

In the early 1970s Trump, his father, and their company were subjected to a major federal housing discrimination lawsuit filed by the DOJ. Investigations showed that Blacks were often told no apartments were available, while whites obtained apartments in the same building. Applications were marked with a “C” code (for colored) or a “9” code to indicate applications were from Black prospective renters. As is the case in recent history, Trump essentially got off free on this case, not requiring a guilty admission but undergoing measures to ensure compliance with the Fair Housing Act. Notably, this event marked the firs time Trump was mentioned in The New York Times.

Trump’s racist tendencies continue.

With attacks on various colleges, the Smithsonian and Trump’s effort to rewrite history on the museum’s displays, attacks on Somalis and nations of primary POC individuals, efforts to rewrite school books, and as is evidenced in his administration’s positions choices, the attempt to erase Black and other people of color is ongoing. Only one senior official, Scott Turner as Secretary of HUD, is Black. Among his first 100 administration picks, white people are over represented, making up 87% of his choices. Currently, white people are only about 58% of the country’s population.

A tipping point?

The American people are rising up against Trump but there is much work to be done. Various government social outlets indicate Trump and his sycophants want to return America to a pre-equality time as evidenced in part by the illustrations used in conjunction with the effort to “making America great again” which use images from the 40s and 50s to make a point. (With the attacks on people of color, can attacks on women and more attacks on LGBTQ+ people be far behind? Take as evidence here the rewriting of the murder of Renee Good that includes slurs against her gender and sexuality.)

Many Black Americans, tired of their ongoing racial struggles, hesitate to become involved in anti-Trump efforts, feeling they have fought enough. In many ways, I can’t blame them.

It is imperative that the mainstream media wakes from its slumber – if it can. Too many outlets are bowing to Trump, writing headlines that whitewash actions and failing to cover much of the anti-Trump sentiment in depth. Republicans are complicit, not surprisingly – can there be any question that many of them lean toward white supremacy?

Across Facebook, and, no doubt, other social venues, that portion of Americans who agree with Trump often comment more than do liberal voices on issues of the day. With social media such an important part of our lives, we need to encourage others to participate in the dialog and present facts to counter lies.

With three more yers of Trump enshitification ahead, our struggles have barely begun.

Let’s get to work.