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Chicken & Poli-trickin’: Donald Trump’s Chick-Fil-A Charade With Black Conservatives Slammed As ‘Staged’ ‘Insult To Our Intelligence’
By Lauryn Bass,
2024-04-14
Critics say Donald Trump went looking for more Black votes with a chicken run to Chick-fil-A and dismissed the “staged” stereotypical stunt as an “insult.”
Source: Megan Varner / Getty
According to WSBTV, the former president bought over 30 milkshakes for a group of Black students at an Atlanta Chick-fil-A, a moment that went viral. The event on Wednesday, where some students appeared to support Trump, quickly became a topic of discussion among political commentators and strategists.
This interaction was filled with photo ops, autographs, “The Lord’s Chicken,” as Trump referenced, and discussions about President Joe Biden’s leadership. Many videos surfaced online with the group of young patrons cheering alongside Trump, “ Bye Bye Biden.”
“I don’t care what the media tells you, Mr. Trump, we support you,” said Michaelah Montgomery. Trump supporters quickly portrayed the clips as an “organic” moment and proof of his popularity as the “people’s president.” However, even Montgomery resents this narrative.
“It’s really disheartening to see that the media makes it seem like we just stumbled into a Chick-fil-A and he bought us milkshakes,” she told ABC News.
Unsurprisingly, Montgomery is actually the leader of a Black conservative organization. This is just the former Georgia Republican Party staffer’s latest event to entice her HBCU peers. It might be promising for Trump’s team to sincerely collaborate with young Black voices. Instead, they became faces of more misinformation.
Chasing Votes: Trump’s Play For Georgia
However, this staged photo op isn’t the whole picture. Experts urge caution in interpreting this event as indicative of a shift in support among Black voters toward Trump. As much as Trump screams that the media is fake, let’s be real. The deep political and economic issues affecting Black communities warrant more scrutiny about Trump’s policies.
“I don’t want to overblow a minor viral moment inside of a Chick-fil-A in Atlanta and make it seem like … Donald Trump is winning Black people,” said Olasanoye.
Trump’s Chick-fil-A Charade: More Than Just Milkshakes?
Pay attention to what Trump is doing. Trump’s outreach efforts to Black voters have been marked by a series of high-profile stunts. Here, he’s buying milkshakes for nearby HBCU students of Clark-Atlanta University, Spelman College, Morehouse College, and Morris Brown College. Remember his promoted custom sneakers?
So, let’s decode the strategy, shall we? It’s all about optics and moments that make for good TV—or good Twitter, in this case. Trump’s team is likely betting that these snapshots with Black students will paint him in a more favorable light. But do these moments come with any meaningful political plans? Or is it just another photo op to add to the campaign highlight reel?
Skeptics Speak Out: Analyzing the Applause
Source: Megan Varner / Getty
Political analysts point out that these outreach initiatives don’t offer much substance for Black American’s concerns about economic inequality, criminal justice reform, and healthcare disparities.
Critics slammed his strategy to win over Georgia in the upcoming election as downright offensive and stereotypical. Where does he expect to find common ground? A sneaker convention and a chicken spot.
“Thinking Black voters relate to Donald Trump because he spent twenty minutes handing out freebies at a fast-food restaurant is yet another insult to our intelligence – and perfect example of just how disingenuous Trump’s outreach to Black voters continues to be,” said Jasmine Harris, a spokesperson for the Biden campaign, in a statement via AP News.
This disconnect raises questions about how he can actually serve most Black voters. The fact that this event was “staged” with a Candace Owens understudy just makes matters worse. Trump refers to the franchise owner hosting the event as a member of his golf club.
Election Countdown: Crunching the Numbers
While Trump parades around with fast food, let’s keep our eyes on the prize.
In that particular election, Pew Research Center states that about 8% of Black voters identified as Republican. Yet, based on the pre-election polls of 2024, this amount increased to 22%. The Black Republic statistics doubled, particularly among young voters. So clearly, Trump’s team has a strategy hard at work.
The Black community is more than a photo-op. Black people are more than the insulting images painted by corrupt systems.
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