Anti-Racism and Political Contagion From Save Darfur to Black Lives Matter

In hindsight, June 16, 2015 was a turning point, a date critical to understanding today’s political tumult. That was the day Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president, theatrically descending the escalator at Trump Tower, then giving a rambling speech that linked illegal immigration, terrorism and the offshoring of American jobs. It was the moment when he introduced the phrase “Make America Great Again” and vowed to build a “great, great wall on our southern border.” The media would focus on his derogatory remarks about Mexicans “bringing drugs, bringing crime.” Trump’s candidacy would cause an immediate spike in hate crimes and send political groups scrambling to join forces with—or distance themselves from—whichever group he targeted next. His following surged as he rode the wave of white nationalist backlash to immigration, failed wars and a Black incumbent.