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May 17, 2024 Story by: Editor
During a weekend visit with family in Detroit, a familiar R&B music radio station delivered a startling political ad amidst the soothing sounds of Anita Baker and Sade.
“Biden says the civil rights issue of our time is transgender equality. Really, Joe?” the narrator proclaimed in the ad. “Men competing against girls and men using girls’ bathrooms is not civil rights. Biden is wrong, and confused.”
The annunciation of the last word was laden with the inflections of Black vernacular, bordering on caricature. And the punch line followed swiftly.
“President Trump will protect our daughters’ sports teams and stop the sexualization of our children,” the narrator continued, in the latest attempt by Donald Trump supporters to court Black voters. The ad, produced by pro-Trump super PAC MAGA Inc., was notable for its scarcity of accuracy but abundance of bigotry.
Accusations hurled at Biden include claims of “letting Mexican cartels pump drugs and fentanyl onto our streets” and “busing rapists and murderers into our communities,” while Democrats are chastised for “handing out our tax dollars to illegals.”
Packing such a fusillade of inaccurate anti-LGBTQ and racist messaging into a mere 60 seconds takes skill. But it’s all in service to a figure who believes hawking gold sneakers and facing criminal charges will secure Black votes.
Initially incensed by this cynical tactic, I soon realized its potential effectiveness. While I view early polls with skepticism, a recent Washington Post-Ipsos survey revealed a decline in Black Americans’ certainty to vote, from 74 percent in June 2020 to 62 percent now. Source: Bostonglobe.com
This decline shouldn’t shock us. Black Americans faced disproportionate threats to their lives and livelihoods during the Trump administration’s mishandling of the COVID-19 crisis, yet led demands for racial justice after George Floyd’s murder. While policies facilitating poll access led to record Black voter turnout, subsequent elections were bound to see diminished numbers.
Elections are won on razor-thin margins in battleground states, prompting the pro-Trump ad’s airing on urban radio stations in Michigan, Georgia, and Pennsylvania. If such ads sway even a fraction of voters, whether by bolstering Trump’s minority support or dissuading disillusioned Biden supporters, the consequences for Biden could be dire.
Trump’s outreach to Black voters, though ludicrous to my ears, transcends mere pandering, notes Ollie Johnson, chair and professor of African American Studies at Wayne State University. It serves to normalize egregious racism, sexism, and demeaning language, tapping into Trump’s history of appealing to America’s lowest common denominator.
Despite Trump’s abrasive attacks on their communities, some young Black and Latino men see him as a symbol of success, admiring his brash demeanor. Biden must counter this narrative by aggressively promoting his administration’s achievements, utilizing Vice President Kamala Harris to debunk Republican attempts to undermine her credibility. If Trump’s overtly bigoted appeals to voters of color gain traction unchallenged, it will be no laughing matter.
