The 8-year presidential reign of democratic leader Barack Obama was revolutionary within the improvements and change that it entailed for the minority groups of the Americas. Holding the title of the first out of the then 44 U.S presidents to be African-American, the start of his run in the office meant the quality of life for black American citizens met an exponential increase. Obama revitalised African American employment rates, insurance rates, education and even life expectancy while also battling to decrease rates of poverty and teen pregnancies. The Obama-era saw more African Americans graduate than any other point in history and where poverty rates fell faster than any year since 1999. With the launch of the ‘My Brother’s Keeper’ initiative in 2014, an opportunity for boys and young men of colour was implemented to fulfil their full potential. That same year, “Advancing Equity for Women and Girls of Colour” was launched by the Council on Women and Girls to ensure that the unique obstacles and experiences that women and girls of colour face are appropriately considered by the Federal Government. Obama also worked arduously on the judicial appointments of African Americans, including the appointment of 53 district judges, with 26 of those being women. Regarding the wrongful shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a 17 year old African American boy, Obama reached a sentimental note within his speech glossed with a sympathy only he could harness towards such a horrific situation of racial prejudice. He states “You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago.” This received much backlash from those who saw this as unprofessional — a vastly white American public being unable to fathom an experience so beyond their prestige, one a white president could not address with the same heartfelt sincerity as Obama.
Donald Trump does not shy away from controversy – whether this be regarding his remarks on minorities or his avid attempt to revert the impacts of Obama’s presidency. During the 2016 campaign, he claimed during his candidacy that he would “cancel every unconstitutional executive action, memorandum and order issued by President Obama.” Some of these changes include the attempt to get rid of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy which provided temporary legal status for people who were brought into the US without documentation and were deemed illegal despite having lived their lives in America. Additionally, writer Ta-Nehisi Coates argued that Trump’s victory in the 2016 election was “in no small part predicated on negating the racial legacy of its predecessor.” Though the mark Obama left behind could not be removed, with enough determination it could be painted over and Trump made every effort to do so. He didn’t spend time beating around the bush or pretending to prioritise racial issues at all. The Trump administration took repeated steps to reverse the measures during the Obama administration to call out institutional racism. A notable case of this was during the midst of the Black Lives Matter protests where Trump’s attorney, Jeff Sessions, prevented investigations into local police forces that had begun in the wake of the police shooting of Michael Brown the previous year. The former Republican leader had not just begun to express his views on race and ethnic groups upon entering the office but has himself a horrifically extensive past dating back as far as the ‘80s where one Kip Brown, former employee of Trump’s Castle recalls “when Donald and Ivana came to the casino, the bosses would order all of the black people off the floor” or during the tragically controversial ’89 case of the “Central Park Five” in which five teenagers, four black and one latino, were accused of the attack and rape of a jogger in NYC. Trump was quick to post ads in local papers demanding that the death penalty be brought back, re-stating his belief that they were guilty again in 2016 despite evidence supporting the contrary. A more recent and fresh controversy came in the form of the U.S Capitol storm in which mobs of his supporters charged past barricades and law enforcement to infiltrate the U.S Capitol. Trump gently warned these people to “go home in peace” and finished it off with “you’re very special” but upon addressing the BLM protests, referred to the protestors as “thugs,” “terrorists” and “anarchists.”
Black Lives Matter is a movement with the aim to address and reform institutional racism and civilly fight against the police brutality against African Americans. It is typically carried out in the form of peaceful protests, petitions and days dedicated to black content creators to amplify their voices and work their way around the white-washed algorithm of social media platforms. The movement first began in July 2013 after the social media hashtag was used and trended following the acquittal of George Zimmerman and the death of teen, Trayvon Martin 17 months prior. The movement began taking to the streets following the 2014 deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, in which the unrest resulted in protests. By extension, 2015 had BLM activists involved with the 2016 presidential election – the movement would never die down from then. However, it wasn’t until the tragic death of George Floyd following the 2020 pandemic that BLM would garner international attention. Around 15-26 million people protested in the U.S alone making it one of the largest movements in the country’s history. Everybody had their part to play whether it was donations, the removal of memorials for historically racist figures, watching documentaries, books and films to self-educate, school sessions or passing the word. It wasn’t entirely accepted however, with the movement being misconstrued by bands of white people believing it was made in attempt to take over and disregard the lives of those who aren’t black. Counter-tags like ‘All Lives Matter’ were used to attack BLM within the lack of understanding that the movement focused on black lives at a time where it was most prevalent to address them.
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