After the deadly attack on Dallas police officers, Donald Trump offered “thoughts and prayers” for all the victims of the week’s violence, including black men killed by police in Minnesota and Louisiana. Nevertheless, there are few signs of sympathy for African-American victims of police shootings in Trump’s presidential nominating convention, the Associated Press reports.
A speaker lineup arranged by Trump’s campaign, facing an overwhelmingly white audience in a majority-black city, has repeatedly belittled the black community’s frustration, and there have been few references to black victims of police brutality. The program has featured people like prominent Black Lives Matter critic and Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke, who drew a massive ovation by declaring “Blue Lives Matter.”
The “Blue Lives Matter” call aggravates many minority voters, who make up a growing segment of the electorate. The Trump approach “has been about a return to the days of white supremacy,” said Cleveland NAACP President Michael Nelson. “You don’t want to alienate a significant portion of your voting population.”
Lynne Patton, an African-American employee of the Eric Trump Foundation, said that, “As a minority myself, I personally pledge to you Donald Trump knows that your life matters. He knows that my life matters. He knows that LGBT lives matter. He knows that veterans lives matter. He knows that blue lives matter.” Trump’s standing with minority voters stands near record lows as he prepares to face the most diverse electorate in the nation’s history.