Wrestler spews ignorance and hate, summing up Trump’s vile style
I was surprised and shocked, as I’m sure many were, at hearing the agenda of the Trump Administration summarized in five words. It all happened at “fight night” on the White House lawn. (I’m not clear if the fighting was celebrating 250 years as a country, or the 80 years of our president.)
Regardless, invited spectators and more distant watchers caught the spirit of male machismo, as Josh Hokit pulverized his opponent, Derrick Lewis, at “UFC Freedom 250.”
The five words I’m talking about were uttered by Hokit, when he was offered the microphone after crushing his opponent. What he said was, “Michelle Obama is a man.” I’m certain some wondered, where did that come from? What does that have to do with a White House “fight night?”
What most didn’t realize, Hokit was projecting the Trump political platform in a short and surprising way: racism, sexism and homophobia. All of those characteristics: any race but white; liberated women; and the LGBTQ+ community, are all under fire in a Trump Administration.
Take race! This is not the best time in this country to be a person of color. You are immediately suspect by the governmental militia called ICE, occupying our cities, our streets, sometimes our schools, and even the entryways and grounds of our churches.
Under this administration, DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) is history. A governmental policy to make sure we were living up to our commitment to all Americans, has been tossed aside, and old and tired efforts at white supremacy, male superiority and denigration of disabilities renewed.
Just one example is what has been happening in Pete Hegseth’s Department of War. Three dozen senior officers have been fired or sidelined during his tenure. They just happened to be black or female. Many were respected and supported by their fellow officers. Many were candidates for promotion, not dismissal.
Institutions, especially schools and universities, are told to relinquish their support for DEI priorities, or face elimination of any federal aid.
(I also wonder why Hokit didn’t use Hilary Clinton as his female example of a Trump opponent? Could it have been her race? After all, she ran against Trump in 2016 and actually won the popular vote.)
Take sexism! Besides the way sexism is advanced in the removal of DEI priorities of equity, we have a president who displays it in almost any news conference with female journalists. They provoke him, especially if they raise questions about uncomfortable issues, like the Epstein Files or “voter fraud” in the 2020 election. Catherine Lucy, Bloomberg’s White House correspondent, became “piggy,” when asking about Epstein. NBC’s Kristen Welker became either “crooked or stupid,” for her questions about “voter fraud.”
But the worst indicator of sexism, is the way our president seems to picture women as objects for play, or display. We’ve seen a few of the pictures of our president as pedophile, whispering in the ear of Jeffrey Epstein or sitting with a young girl on his lap. We now know, “Donald Trump is mentioned 38,000 times across more than 5,300 specific documents flagged in the Justice Department’s massive release of Epstein-related records,” according to the New York Times.
Take homophobia! Under the Trump Administration, if you are openly transgendered, you won’t serve in the U.S. military. Federal contractors and adoption agencies can legally discriminate against you. Federal guidelines allowing transgender students to use bathrooms corresponding to their gender identity have been reversed, and protections under the Affordable Care Act have been removed. It’s not a good time to be a member of the LGBTQ+ community in the eyes of the federal government!
The other day I listened to Michelle Obama at the opening of the Obama Presidential Center and Museum on June 19. Her speech was thoughtful and caring. It was also powerful. I found it more riveting than that of her husband. I can almost understand why Hokit called her a man, as she exhibits a “no-bullshit” attitude usually reserved for the male species.
We have taken several social steps backward with this president and his supporters, in relationships between the races, the sexes, and with the LGBTQ+ community. Perhaps if we recognize our president is seriously ill, and his supporters are morally and ethically compromised, we can begin to build that society described in our Declaration of Independence.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men (and women) are crested equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
In fact, in this 250th year of our origins, we would all do well to go back and read the whole Declaration, as it is a response to an autocratic and authoritarian government that ignored the will of the people. For instance: the government obstructed the naturalization of foreigners; discouraged migration; made judges dependent on the will of the king; sent swarms of officers to harass the people; cut off trade with much of the world; deprived many of trial by jury; abolished valuable laws.
It all sounds so familiar, it should be motivating. In this 250th year, we need to proclaim again, “No Kings!”
Carl Kline of Brookings is a United Church of Christ clergyman and adjunct faculty member at the Mt. Marty College campus in Watertown. He is a founder and on the planning committee of the Brookings Interfaith Council, co-founder of Nonviolent Alternatives, a small not-for-profit that, for 15 years, provided intercultural experiences with Lakota/Dakota people in the Northern Plains and brought conflict resolution and peer mediation programs to schools around the region. He was one of the early participants in the development of Peace Brigades International. Kline can be reached at carl@satyagrahainstitute.org. This column originally appeared in the Brookings Register.
Photo: public domain, wikimedia commons
The South Dakota Standard is offered freely and is supported by our readers. We have no political or commercial sponsorship. If you'd like to help us continue our mission to advance independent political and social commentary, you can do so by clicking on the "Donate" button that's on the sidebar to your right.
Follow us and comment on X and Bluesky
