Why does Donald Trump go out of his way to find nominees who hate racial, religious and gender equity to oversee racial, religious and gender equity? Perhaps the answer is in the question…
Eric Dreiband is the latest name tossed into the racial meat-grinder known as the Trump administration. Dreiband has a list of greatest hits, opposing equal pay rights legislation for women, favoring the discriminatory hiring rights of a clothing company to deny employment to a Muslim woman and most notably argued in favor of the HB2 anti-transgender bathroom bill in North Carolina.
Dreiband is the latest candidate named to work on the renowned and esteemed DOJ Civil Rights Division. Yes, the oxymoronic appointment, that seems obvious, is not an intellectual exercise Mr. Trump engages in; thoughtful decision making. My uncle was fond of saying, ‘once is an accident, twice is a coincidence and three times is a trend.’ So, we had Steve Bannon first, Jeff Sessions second, and now Eric Dreiband to complete the triad. The Trump family history of racial discrimination dating back to his father, have been outlined in numerous publications. I often tell my sons, as Black men, they should never be surprised by racial discrimination but be disappointed and prepared to fight against it.
America’s internal struggles that have plagued the fight for racial equity are primarily imposed, but on some sad occasions, self-imposed. Slaves were confused and some, as difficult as it may sound, debated whether to throw off the shackles of their servitude following the civil war. Where would they go, who could they trust? That same sort of dichotomy has been played out throughout my personal history, an intra-racial test of blackness: see brown paper bag test. This sort of colorism and self-hate was for the most part publicly scorned in the early nineteen eighties but still, has hidden and deep roots. I have read articles and blog post both here and elsewhere on the Colin Kaepernick anthem protest. Some of the most public and harshest critics have been respected and accomplished Black men. Future Hall of Fame football player Ray Lewis recently faulted Kaepernick’s girlfriend’s twitter post for his obvious blackballing from the league. Lewis who had legal problems himself seems to have forgotten the overzealous nature of public opinionated prosecution. Michael Vick, long time NFL quarterback, spent time in prison and was commonly referred to as a thug because of his cornrows and background. Vick, unfortunately, used Kaepernick’s hairstyle as a partial excuse for his problems of getting a job in the NFL.
Most disappointing, for my generation, was the criticism from the greatest football player ever, HOF’er Jim Brown. Brown has worked with at risk youth, spearheaded civil rights protest and fought societal discrimination for years. Brown most famously stood with Muhammad Ali when he refused to enter the Vietnam War on religious grounds. Somehow, that does not translate into the peaceful and respectful protest by Mr. Kaepernick, decrying the murderers of young black men for Mr. Brown, I can only guess. I hope Mr. Brown remembers his own words, “Your integrity is way up there. And as a single human being, if you carry yourself in a certain way, you can defy all evil that comes at us…” other prominent athletes, who are now castigating Mr. Kaepernick, should listen as well. I wonder if Mr. Brown, Mr. Lewis or Mr. Vick have asked Mr. Kaepernick,” what do you want? Instead, they have said, let me tell you why you are wrong…
Vote in 18’ for Change.