You watched with mouths agape
A former federal official, 34-time convicted felon and adjudicated sex offender, the Republican Party’s 2024 nominee for president, is experiencing media-spotlight withdrawal symptoms. Since the close of his party’s convention, he has been displaced in the news cycle by his woman-and-cat-hating choice of running mate and the Democrats’ bi-racial, non-male replacement for President Joe Biden who withdrew from the race.
In a desperate bid to wrest back public attention, the Republican candidate agreed to take questions before the annual meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists. His behavior and racist statements were the equivalent of self-immolation. Mouth agape stuff, the NABJ agreed with gasps. Perhaps most notably when he suggested Vice President Kamala Harris is not really Black.
“I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn Black and now she wants to be known as Black. So, I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?” Trump said.
For any other candidate, this racist attack would be the end of his/her campaign. For Donald Trump, it was just a Wednesday. If he threw all caution aside to get the attention he so needs more than oxygen, he succeeded.
That’s just about all the attention I’ll give him here. But let his niece, psychologist Mary Trump, recommend the appropriate response from normal people:
Donald, though, is not somebody to fear on his own. He is a weak, fragile man who is yes, deeply weird and deeply disturbed. He needs to be mocked mercilessly. He told us recently, that the one thing he hates, probably more than anything else, is to be laughed at.
For us not to laugh at him, not to mock him is to miss an opportunity. It isn’t mean or impolite or in bad form to mock and laugh at or make fun of somebody who wants to destroy us. We have to go full throttle because as we get closer to the election, we’re going to see the terms of the fight unfold and as bad as what they’ve been saying so far has been, it’s going to get worse.
We need to be ready to counter the danger with joy, the weirdness with mockery. And we need to keep laughing.
Stepping up to the plate, #WhenITurnedBlack began trending on Xitter. Echoing #lettersfromthesecondcivilwar that trended around July 4th in 2018, users began sharing personal stories of when they too turned Black.
Leon Langford @MasonLLL
I spent my first three Thanksgivings as a Caucasian, but the first time the yams touched the Mac and cheese on my plate, everything changed. Hair, nappy. Rhythm, instilled. Shea butter, right between the fingers. #WhenITurnedBlack
Akilah Hughes @AkilahObviously
I turned Black when the Spice Girls came out. Suddenly I *was* Scary Spice in every play date. #WhenITurnedBlack
King E ⚔️ @1kingethan
I was outside with a group of white friends, around 6 years old, the streetlight started to crackle and none of them moved, I said I have to go home now, they looked at me like I was crazy. That’s when I knew I had to be black #WhenITurnedBlack
The saddest part of this trending hashtag are stories that are not at all funny.
If anyone not in the MAGA cult is unaware, that’s how Donald Trump sees all non-white people who won’t kiss his ass.
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