By Nate Abraham Jr.
COMMENTARY
Okay, let’s get this out of the way. A large number of African-Americans consider any Black person who says anything that could be seen as even remotely complimentary towards Donald Trump is a house Negro, Uncle Tom, and a self-loathing jackass who hates his people.
But once the name-calling and insults are done, we need to pull our heads out of our behinds and talk about what he actually said.
During last Thursday’s presidential debate, Donald Trump stated that massive illegal immigration under the Biden administration has led to the destruction of “Black jobs.” Since then, Black folks have mocked Trump with an endless barrage of “Black jobs” memes and jokes. The general Black consensus seems to be that Biden looked bad, but Trump lied throughout the debate.
He may have been lying, but on the issue of “Black jobs,” he was telling the truth. Illegal immigration harms the Black community in general, and Black employment in particular.
One example: In West Columbia, there is a large chicken processing plant on the Congaree River near the Gervais Street Bridge. Several years ago, when you passed by the plant during a shift change, EVERY worker you saw entering or leaving the plant was Hispanic. One day, federal officials raided the company’s sister plants in several locations across the Carolinas. Now when you drive by the plant during a shift change, you will see mostly Black (and white) employees. When the plant was staffed with illegal immigrants, they had few Black or white employees.
Another example: Several years ago, I needed to replace the roof on my house. I hired a Black contractor, who told me that his crew would begin at 8 a.m. and finish the job at 3 p.m.
I was eating breakfast at 7:45 a.m. when I heard footsteps and voices from above. I couldn’t understand what they were saying because the voices were speaking Spanish. I went outside, and EVERY worker on my roof and in my yard was Hispanic. Only the foreman spoke English.
At 2 {: } 4 5 \mathrm { p. m. } , they finished and left. The Black contractor returned, inspected the roof and collected his check.
Black men used to dominate the local construction industry. But they have been pushed out of those “Black jobs” by immigrants (both legal and illegal), who will work longer hours for less money.
This is a nationwide problem, but it is only the tip of the iceberg. In “sanctuary cities” such as Chicago and New York, Black folks are seething with anger over the massive influx of illegal immigrants. To add insult to injury, both cities are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to feed and house illegal immigrants, including housing them in hotels and providing them with spending money – things they won’t do for veterans and Black folks who are living in poverty or on the streets.
Black voters have every right to be angry over Biden’s open border policy. It is one of the major factors in the decline in his support among Black voters.
I don’t care for either candidate. Neither is worthy of my vote. I didn’t vote of either one of them the last election, and I’ll probably vote against them again.
No matter who wins, I believe we need to start having real conversations in our community about issues affecting us. On this particular issue, Trump was right.
If you disagree, write a response. I am l always interested in reading opposing views. You can’t learn anything if you live in an echo chamber.
What Should Happen Next
The debate was a disaster for President Biden. His lack of mental and physical stamina was exposed to the world – and to American voters. Anybody who had been paying attention would have already noticed it, despite the denials of his staff. He never should have run in the first place.
The debate debacle gives Democrats an opportunity to make some changes. Here’s what they need to do:
First, Biden needs to end his campaign at the Democratic National Convention and let delegates choose a new candidate. Kamala Harris wants to be the nominee, but she is even more unpopular than Biden. Trump would beat her in a landslide. Nobody wants her to be the Democrat’s candidate – even Black people.
To make her happy, Biden should also resign the presidency and let her serve out the remainder of his term. She will make history as America’s first female president. Hopefully, there won’t be a major international or domestic crisis between now and inauguration day.
With Harris out of the way, Democrats can have a free-forall at their convention and settle on a candidate. They should pick a governor from any state other than California. Since most of the battleground states are in the Midwest, they need to pick a governor from that region.
At this point, the election is still Trump’s to lose. But the
right pick could make it interesting.
