OPINION:
Former President Donald Trump’s recent comparison of his own legal woes to centuries of anti-Black prejudice brings to mind the saying, “If you don’t know when you’ve been spit upon, it doesn’t matter much what else you know” (“Trump says his criminal indictments boosted his appeal to Black voters,” web, Feb. 24).
For Mr. Trump to make this egregious comparison in the presence of a Black audience (and have many members of that audience laugh and clap) shows how desensitized Black conservatives have become.
The idea that there’s any similarity between the legal troubles of the former president and years of enslavement and frequently violent discrimination reflects a fundamental ignorance of the deep-rooted inequalities in our society. It also shows the laziness of the audience.
The generational trauma experienced by Black people in America should never be fodder for someone whose White privilege is arguably the only thing keeping him out of jail.
The Jim Crow laws, segregation and ongoing systemic racism still shape the experiences of Black Americans today. From disproportionate incarceration rates to police brutality and economic disparities, the effects of institutionalized racism are pervasive and undeniable.
If the American media and the Republican Party had even a modicum of respect for Black people, they would demand that Mr. Trump apologize — but I won’t hold my breath. Republicans are mortally afraid of Mr. Trump, and the media monetizes his idiocy.
FREDERICK A. BARON
Columbus, Ohio
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