No, Black people may not be joining all of your protests. But they are still resisting [View all]

No, Black people may not be joining all of your protests. But they are still resisting
Black Americans’ call to sit out of Trump protests and marches post-election hasn’t exactly translated to inaction

By Tatyana Tandanpolie
Staff Reporter
Published July 5, 2025 6:30AM (EDT)


(Salon) Monica Wilson was so devastated by the result of the 2024 presidential election, she couldn’t even move the day after. She had cast her ballot for Vice President Kamala Harris but became disillusioned when she learned a plurality of Americans ultimately chose Donald Trump.

“I actually was one of those Black women that said, ‘To hell with it. You do what you want. It’s your issue. You created it,’” Wilson, who serves as a Parma, Ohio, city councilwoman, recalled in a phone interview.

Wilson wasn’t alone in her anger. Black voters carried the Democratic vote in 2024, voting for Harris at 83%, split between 89% of Black women and 75% of Black men, according to a 2025 Pew Research Center report. When Harris lost to Trump, members of those majorities declared that they would not participate in any and all anti-Trump protests. But just under six months into Trump’s presidency, that declaration hasn’t exactly translated to inaction.

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That commitment to sitting out — abstaining from anti-Trump demonstrations in favor of staying home — was apparent in the “Hands Off” protests against the administration. Reports noted that crowds were largely made up of older white people, pointing to photos from the actions across the country as evidence. That was in contrast with the diverse, Black-led protests that erupted in 2020 and galvanized thousands of Americans against police brutality and anti-Black racism.

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Marcus Anthony Hunter, professor of sociology and African American Studies at UCLA, echoed that sentiment. Black people, he added, also must weigh the risk of engaging in demonstrations and the potential for violent encounters with law enforcement against their safety and livelihoods. ...................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2025/07/05/no-black-people-may-not-be-joining-all-of-your-protests-but-they-are-still-resisting/