Beware when you hear Trump wave a flag for African Americans [View all]

Donna F. Edwards, a Democrat, represented Maryland’s 4th District in the U.S. House from 2008 to 2017.

I remember during the late 1980s, following my grandmother’s death, our family’s complete surprise when we discovered food, clothing and a clean bed for an immigrant from Central America in her basement. She was part of a network of church communities offering temporary refuge for those fleeing the civil wars and turmoil raging in that region. It was a dramatic introduction to the hardships faced by people desperate for a new life in the United States.

My grandmother’s reaction was a powerful lesson in kindness for the stranger. President Trump has a different reaction in mind. It was no surprise to anyone that fear played a larger role than truth in the president’s address to the nation Tuesday night in defense of his border-wall proposal. Fear of rapists, fear of murderers and fear of drug traffickers. Before that, it was fear of thousands of terrorists pouring over the southern border, an argument that had to be abandoned once the fact-checkers debunked it.

And if those fears don’t move the needle, the president stokes the fear that immigrants are taking the jobs of African Americans.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/beware-when-you-hear-trump-wave-a-flag-for-african-americans/2019/01/09/6ba26cb0-144e-11e9-90a8-136fa44b80ba_story.html?utm_term=.90ebc75416e8