Donald Trump’s shallow lies fooled some Black voters, but that’s over now | Opinion
Donald Trump grifted all Americans with promises of prosperity, from lowering the price of eggs to creating more jobs. His campaign was full of promises that Americans wanted, especially Black Americans. And it worked.
A June Pew Research Center study found that Trump won 15% of Black voters in the 2024 election, up from 8% in 2020.
But since Trump was inaugurated, his approval ratings have gone down.
A average of polls from the Decision Desk HQ found that at the start of his term, Trump had a disapproval rating of 44% and an approval rating of 35% among Black voters. At the beginning of March, his disapproval rating was at around 63%, and now it has reached 71.5% as of July 7.
Black people also don’t approve of his handling of inflation. A July YouGov/The Economist survey found that only 16% of Black voters approve of Trump’s performance compared to 19% in June.
People were surprised by Trump’s increased popularity among Black people, but as a melanin man myself, I understood why they were so fond of him.
It all starts with hip-hop.
Why Trump appeals to some Black people
I grew up in a time when rappers like Lil Wayne and Juvenile wore bright diamond necklaces with crosses the size of miniature footballs. I recall watching the music video for Mississippi rapper David Banner’s song “Like a Pimp” featuring rapper Lil’ Flip. The video was quite simple. Banner and Lil’ Flip were gathered with their friends in a circle of brightly colored Cadillacs and Bentleys. The main action involved throwing money at women dancing provocatively.
Gotta keep on theme, ya know.
That type of music video is too common in an industry that is centered around sex, money and drugs. For decades, it has been defined by an expensive lifestyle that many people, regardless of color, can’t achieve.
A culture featuring such excesses is not inherently bad. But it does leave some vulnerable to leaders like Trump who project the same money-centered persona.
The hard truth is that while espousing white supremacist views, Trump is a fervent capitalist who is known for golden towers and putting his name on anything from steaks to Bibles.
The worst part of all of this is how shallow it is. Reparations are a vital issue to Black Americans, yet Trump and his administration would never stand for them. The only time the administration mentions reparations is to twist the idea to fit Trump’s white supremacist political agenda.
In an April interview, Trump advisor Stephen Miller said Americans deserve reparations for “what’s been stolen from us” by “uncontrolled, illegal mass migration.” In other words, Black and brown people who voted for Trump shouldn’t expect any help from Trump.
From his campaign to his presidency, Trump has made a clear statement that he will focus his energy on his white American audience.
Trump issued no apology to the Haitian community when he made his infamous “they’re eating the dogs” comments last year, insinuating that Haitians in Ohio were taking pets and cooking them in their restaurants.
Trump’s treatment of Black and brown immigrants should be a wake-up call: if he’s willing to do this to them, what would he do to us?
Meanwhile, Trump offered refuge to white South African farmers and even a pathway to citizenship.
A different kind of wealth
The wealth that Black Americans seek as a collective comes when community is chosen over greed. Money is certainly needed to create stability, but it’s not what maintains it.
Trump was able to fool enough Black people yearning for help, and it’s clear that he hasn’t and won’t help them.
For Black America, the time is now to look beyond surface-level riches and to stop being taken in by rich people who pretend to look in their direction with a crumb of attention.
Our vote is more valuable than that. Our communities deserve more.
This story was originally published July 14, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Donald Trump’s shallow lies fooled some Black voters, but that’s over now | Opinion."
