An Op/Ed
by Jeffery Kazembe Batts
To me the choice is clear. Vice President Kamala Harris is a better choice in the upcoming national election than a twice impeached, 34-time convicted felon, sexual assault civil court losing, four times indicted, twice losing the popular vote, insurrectionist leading, overt wannabe dictator, former president Donald Trump.
You may have some in your family, on your job, in your building or neighborhood. They must be engaged in dialogue. Discussing presidential politics on Tompkins Ave, Fulton St., or Nostrand Ave is challenging and inspiring. Although I disagree with those who are supporting Trump, they do have specific points of view that they dwell on and articulate when I make the case for VP Harris. The following is a brief overview of what I heard on the streets, primarily from young Black men. Many say that they can relate to Trump as someone who is against “the system and status quo.” That the economy was better when Trump was president. Trump keeps it real, and they prefer a president like that than the “tricks and lying” from President Biden and even former President Obama.
When the men say that Trump is against the “system and status quo” I seek to get what they really mean by that. They say it is how he speaks out about “the deep state” and wanting to clean it up. Pressed harder my young Black male neighbors say it is what he is saying but don’t point out any specifics about the “deep state”. They say, “he is an outsider.” I counter that even if he was once “against the system and status quo” that is no longer the case because as a former president he knows the system and is a part of it now.
“The economy was better under Trump” is a common utterance. I counter that they should check the statistics and not believe what known liar Trump is promoting. I remind then that Trump inherited a robust economy from Pres. Obama after Obama saved the country from Pres. Bush disastrous economic policies. Trump also facilitated the shut down of the country by ignoring the warnings about the seriousness of the pandemic and thereby making it worse.
Although inflation may be higher than some parts of Trumps for year reign, on the other hand Black unemployment is at an all-time low. I urge my friends and associates to check the statistics which are not rightwing or leftwing but just facts. If they did then they would know that Pres. Biden has a better record than Trump on many key economic statistics.
“Trump keeps it real” and “we rather a person we know what they are going to do.” I love this part of our sidewalk conversations. I say, “sure you’re right’. He has told us exactly how anti-Black people he is. He has told us that police should be rough with the community and favors qualified immunity for cops. That is why most police unions across the country have endorsed his quest for a repeat as president. Trump has not apologized for his “death penalty” newspaper ads attacking the teens, now known as Exonerated Five.
Even after the whole world knows about the unfortunate false convictions. “Africa and Haiti are shit countries” said Trump. No uniform outrage just more of “at least he keeps it real.” Biden said “Haiti could sink into the sea” some of the knowledgeable add. This is true. He did say that but it’s taken out of context, and explained by Politfact.com this way. “The full context of his remarks shows Biden was discussing the rationale for a potential U.S. military intervention and arguing that there were greater U.S. interests elsewhere in the world, including in Bosnia..”
“Harris is a prosecutor and Trump is a felon” one young man explained. “Harris has locked up many Black men.” “I got a felony and I’m down with Trump.” I counter that Harris and Biden do have flaws, but I bet you don’t have 34 felony convictions. If you did then you would not be talking to me now. You would still be in the penitentiary.
The conversations are intense and often get heated. I admit that Democrats Biden and now Harris do have policies that I disagree with. Nonetheless I do believe that Trump is a unique threat. Twice impeached and then undeniably enabled a bloody insurrection attempt on January 6th, he is a fundamental threat to democracy as we have known it in this country. He must not get back into power. Yes, the lesser of two evils is relevant. I will continue to talk to my brothers between now and election day on Tuesday, November 5th doing my part to get the numbers up and to save American democracy for what it is worth, as a Black person whose people have never been thoroughly enfranchised. Jeffery Kazembe Batts IG: @kazbattsIG