Donald Trump’s controversial appearance at the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) annual convention in Chicago may have been even more of a disaster than most had anticipated. The nasty vitriol the twice-impeached former president immediately brought should only heighten calls for the hierarchy of NABJ to resign.
The disgraceful event began with tension as well-respected ABC News journalist Rachel Scott asked Trump about his past racist comments and why Black voters should trust him. “First of all, I don’t think I’ve ever been asked a question in such a horrible manner,” Trump responded. His statement was met with audible gasps from the audience, setting a combative tone for the 34-minute discussion that followed a nearly hour-long delay.
During the discussion, Trump, among his many rant-filled and off-the-rails diatribes, questioned Vice President Kamala Harris’s racial identity, asking, “Is she Indian or is she Black?” He falsely claimed that Harris, who has long identified as Black and attended a historically Black university, previously identified as Indian before “all of a sudden” becoming Black. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned Trump’s comments as “repulsive” and “insulting,” asserting that “no one has any right to tell someone who they are.”
The 34 times convicted felon and former president also reiterated his openness to pardoning January 6 rioters, stating, “If they’re innocent, I would pardon them.” When Scott drew attention to their convictions, Trump dissembled by asserting falsely that pro-Palestinian protesters had attacked the Capitol last week, confusing it with the recent protests at Washington, D.C.’s Union Station.
Throughout the panel discussion, which included Scott, FOX News personality and Trump apologist Harris Faulkner, and Kadia Goba from Semafor, Trump continued to clash with the audience and the panelists. He labeled Scott “nasty” for her questions, prompting shouts of “false” and boos from the crowd.
Trump also addressed his running mate, J.D. Vance, downplaying the significance of a running mate following Vance’s controversial remarks about childless women. Toward the event’s conclusion, Trump declared his intentions to “close the border” and lower energy prices and interest rates if re-elected. “I want people to come into our country, but they have to be vetted, and they have to be checked,” he told the crowd. He also doubled down on his insult to African Americans by stating that illegal immigrants were taking “Black jobs,” to which the audience again hissed and booed.
The aftermath of the event has led to significant fallout within the NABJ. Karen Attiah, a Washington Post columnist and co-chair of the convention, resigned in protest over the decision to invite Trump. In her resignation announcement on X (formerly Twitter), Attiah expressed disappointment over not being consulted about the decision.
Prominent members of the journalism community also voiced their disapproval. Jim Trotter, a sportswriter for The Athletic and NABJ’s 2023 Journalist of the Year, called the decision “difficult to put into words.” CBS Sports analyst Ashley Nicole Moss, journalist-turned-publicist Dave Jordan, and media strategist April Reign joined the chorus of criticism.
Ameshia Cross, a Democratic strategist and political pundit, and former NABJ journalist of the year Ernest Owens highlighted the irony of inviting Trump, given his history of attacking Black journalists and efforts to undermine diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. “Shame on you NABJ,” Owens tweeted. “A disgrace. Defund and divest.”
The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) also condemned the invitation, with NNPA National Chair Bobby Henry and President & CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis denouncing the decision as harmful and contrary to NABJ’s values of inclusion and solidarity. “They invited him to disrespect a Black woman and did nothing to protect or back her up,” journalist and author David Dennis Jr. tweeted. “The single most disgraceful thing I’ve ever seen at NABJ.”
Harris communication’s director Michael Tyler also denounced Trump’s hostile engagement with NABJ.
“The hostility Donald Trump showed on stage today is the same hostility he has shown throughout his life, throughout his term in office, and throughout his campaign for president as he seeks to regain power and inflict his harmful Project 2025 agenda on the American people,” Tyler stated.
“Trump lobbed personal attacks and insults at Black journalists the same way he did throughout his presidency – while he failed Black families and left the entire country digging out of the ditch, he left us in. Donald Trump has already proven he cannot unite America, so he attempts to divide us. “Today’s tirade is simply a taste of the chaos and division that has been a hallmark of Trump’s MAGA rallies this entire campaign.”
