It’s Impossible to Believe This Administration Likes Black People
The erasure of Chappie James and the silence around the attack on Michelle Obama demonstrate intent.
By Carron J. Phillips
Racism’s superpower lies in the fact that many white people tend not to acknowledge its subtleties. But some instances of racism are so glaring that even those who claim to “not see color” must recognize it.
The Atlantic recently reported that the Defense Department removed a portrait of Daniel “Chappie” James Jr. that was prominently positioned in the Air Force Art Gallery. The Pentagon allegedly chose to keep the space that had been occupied by America’s first Black four-star general void, as if James’ legacy is undeserving of such recognition. The Atlantic also examined how former President Ronald Reagan — the originator of MAGA — referred to James, a man who flew 179 missions between the Korean War and Vietnam, as a “darned good pilot and a revered military officer and a truly great American.” James was honored in Florida in 2020 with a bridge named in his honor.
Yes, you read that correctly. James’ contributions were so undeniable that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis named a bridge after a Black man. It takes a different kind of evil to belittle a patriot and war hero of that stature.
During his tenure, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been involved in blocking and delaying promotions for over a dozen Black and female senior officers across the military. The disparagement of James is similar to what the Defense Department did last year when it removed (and later restored) a story highlighting Jackie Robinson’s military service. Hegseth also returned a Confederate memorial to Arlington National Cemetery as a reminder of this regime’s affinity for losers.
“Under Secretary Hegseth, military promotions are given to those who have earned them. Meritocracy, which reigns in this Department, is apolitical and unbiased,” Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement responding to NBC News’s inquiry on the matter. Things have gotten so bad that a federal judge this month ordered the Trump administration to reinstall exhibits about slavery that had been removed in the Department of the Interior’s “sustained campaign to erase history and undermine science.” Hegseth hates anything connected to diversity, even describing military leaders as “woke and weak” while speaking at West Point’s graduation last month.
“You’ve seen standards lowered, you’ve seen an obsession with race and gender, you’ve seen the watering down of discipline, codes weakened and traditions tossed aside in the name of political correctness, statues taken down, paintings placed in the basement. I’m here to tell you the slow slide here at West Point and across the United States Army is over,” he declared in a speech that sounded as if he’d prefer a military that was exclusively for straight white men.
Imagine the uproar if a Black defense secretary behaved like Hegseth. Improper conduct is the foundation of white privilege.
The actions and legislation from this administration over the past two-plus years reflect the aspirations of Trump’s first term coming to fruition. From the dismantling of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives to continuous attacks on minorities and women, this administration seems committed to dragging America back into the past. The man who freely texted war plans is reveling in this regression, particularly as they perceive it as necessary retribution for the election of a Black president and a Black woman as vice president.
“Unlike Obama, President Trump is smart about these things,” Hegseth recently said on CBS’ Face the Nation about the ongoing war with Iran, which uprooted the Iran deal that the Obama administration was responsible for. “It was Donald Trump who made the decision to actually rip that agreement up, because apparently, he suffers from Obama derangement syndrome,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries slyly rebuffed on NBC’s Meet the Press.
Unfortunately, that derangement extends beyond the White House. After UFC fighter Josh Hokit won his match at last weekend’s event on the South Lawn at Trump’s Freedom 250 — a scene that resembled something out of a Disney movie about a kid who became president — he publicly asserted that former first lady Michelle Obama “is a man.”
This is the part where I remind you that we’re days from Juneteenth.
This is where it needs to be reiterated that the Obama Center is opening this weekend in Chicago.
This is the moment where we should all have a thorough understanding of how supporters of this administration have no respect, decorum, or common decency for anybody — including themselves.
And lastly, this is an opportunity for people to realize that a man who reposted an A.I. video to social media depicting the Obamas as apes is not going to release a statement denouncing racism against the Black woman his wife so desperately wants to be but can’t.
The problem with Hegseth, Trump, and the MAGA movement goes beyond their hypocrisy and belief in vile politics; it marks a modern era where blatant racism and sexism are acceptable. The duration of this will be determined by how much of it white America can tolerate.
On a recent podcast appearance, Michelle Obama made headlines when she characterized MAGA voters as desperate people who are not necessarily racists. The great Black American writer James Baldwin once said, “I can’t believe what you say, because I see what you do.” From the erasure of Chappie James to the denigration of Michelle Obama, it is beyond clear that going high when others go low is a losing strategy — especially when the race to the bottom is being led by those who serve at the top.
Carron J. Phillips is an award-winning journalist who writes on race, culture, social issues, politics, and sports. He hails from Saginaw, Michigan, and is a graduate of Morehouse College and Syracuse University. Follow his personal Substack to keep up with more of his work.
We've never stopped fighting the Civil War, it seems.