"Sacrificing Moral Character for Political Expediency: Reflections on Election2024" by Jonathan Lightfoot and Veronica Lippencott

As directors of the Center for “Race,” Culture and Social Justice, we seek to frame the recent re-election of Donald Trump as a social justice issue at the intersections of “race,” culture, religion, and politics. We are disheartened to discover that the United States of America chose a white male, 34-count convicted felon, an adjudicated rapist, psychopathic narcissist, and a pathological liar over a highly qualified Black woman of Asian descent with a clean record of criminal or civil liability. In fact, sitting Vice President Kamala Harris had the highest level of elected office experience of anyone who has sought the presidency during the last 65 years. We posit that finger pointing and blaming does little good without an understanding of the historical, social, and political contexts that yielded such results. The United States of America was founded on white supremacy, Indigenous people’s genocide, African people’s enslavement, and female oppression. The vast majority of Donald’s base is white Christian evangelicals who are fed a constant diet of fear and loathing of the other, which includes immigrants from Black and Brown countries, members of the LGBTQ community, and anyone who embraces the “woke” policies of bodily autonomy, diversity, equity and inclusion. The double standard could not be clearer. Whereas Republicans ran a campaign of shameless whiteness and unapologetic Christian nationalism, Democrats ran a campaign that emphasized a brand of universal colorblindness that was detached from the powerful identity markers of race, ethnicity, color, sex, and lower-class status. Had Democrats chose to fight fire with fire and embrace identity politics, the outcome may have been different. The American institutional ethos of white male supremacy dates back to at least 1619 and as such we argue that the Constitution and democracy were not threatened as much as white male supremacy and greedy market capitalism were. It, once again, survived another close call against its dominance and authority.

Social justice not only require a fair distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society, but it also demands a system of truth telling, reconciliation, restoration, and repair of those who continue to suffer generational pain and abuse. Ultimately, Donald fails the Moral Character Question. Dr. Robert Jones, founder of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), explains the steadfast white Christian evangelical support of Trump with biblical references where God uses imperfect sinners to fulfill God’s perfect will and plan for His people. They see Trump as their savior, who has been called by God to make America great (white) again amidst a browning that threatens their privilege and worldview. It is abject hypocrisy for the white evangelical republican Christian community to give him a pass on his depraved criminality.  It was during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s when the Democratic party attracted and aligned with non-white Christians and other marginalized groups. At the same time white Christian groups began migrating to the Republican Party, similar to the white flight experienced in housing markets and school districts.

Will Donald Trump ever be held accountable for his financial misdeeds, sex offenses, and other crimes?  The moniker “Teflon Don” suggests not. Between 1973 and 2016, Trump and his businesses were involved in over 4,000 legal cases in United States federal and state courts. As of March 2024, Donald Trump has been personally charged with 88 criminal offenses across four criminal cases. It is safe to say that had Kamala Harris been the subject of or at the center of even one criminal or civil lawsuit, let alone as many as Donald Trump, she would have been summarily disqualified as a viable candidate for President of the United States. What does it say about a nation of laws that claims to hold no man or woman above the law and still allow one man to make such a blatant mockery of the constitution and its laws? 

The new administration promises institutional disruption, departmental dismantling, and a draining of the “deep state.” The prospective cabinet appointees read like a casting call of sycophants ready and willing to entertain and perform magic for a bored and vengeful king. A common theme that appears to connect several of them is the allegation of sexual assault and exploitation. The U.S. Department of Education, the Department of Defense, and the Health and Human Services are all being threatened with abolition or massive overhaul (Read Project 2025). Should the “king” get his way the outcome will be chaos, unnecessary human suffering, death, and despair.

Is there a word of hope and consolation we can offer those who feel traumatized, vulnerable, and unsafe during these times of uncertainty and credible threats to our way of life? According to Donald’s niece, psychologist Mary Trump, the upcoming administration promises “no false hope; no silver lining." "I think it's fair to say it will be much worse for those of us who fought as hard as we could to make sure we never had to wake up to this nightmare," she added. "The fascism is here, and we have to confront it head-on," echoing retired general John Kelly, Trump's former chief of staff regarding Donald’s fascistic tendencies. Unlike what happened on January 6, 2021, we expect a peaceful transition of power. We recommend self-care, celebrating culture, finding community, and speaking truth to power in the name of social justice for the next 4 years and beyond. And always remember the wise words of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who quoted poet William Cullen Bryant in saying: “Truth crushed to earth will rise again.”

Dr. Jonathan Lightfoot, Founding Director
Dr. Veronica Lippencott, Associate Director