Donald Trump has spent decades attacking Black people and businesses. The federal government sued him for refusing to rent to Black tenants. He ran a full-page ad calling for the execution of the Central Park Five.
He’s also laid off tens of thousands of federal workers, targeting DEI staff, probationary employees, and foreign aid officials. These cuts are hitting Black workers the hardest, especially at agencies like HUD and the Department of Education, which employ a high share of Black staff and provide critical services to our communities.
Most offensive? While he tears down opportunity for people like us, Trump has used the powers of the presidency blatantly to reward his friends. Here in New York, that’s the well-heeled owners and execs for the New York Yankees.
Levine and Trump’s relationship goes way back. Levine was floated as a possible chief of staff in Trump’s first term. Trump recently appointed Levine’s wife, Mindy, to the Kennedy Center Board. And the Trump-Steinbrenner alliance is even older. George Steinbrenner and Donald Trump were part of the same New York power circles for decades, sharing fundraisers, lawyers, and PR machines.
At the New York Black Chamber of Commerce, we represent more than 2,000 Black and Brown-owned businesses. None of our members can call the president to help close a contract deal. We don’t get political favors or federal appointees going to bat for us.
That’s what makes this so offensive. Trump is using the levers of government to reward his inner circle while destroying the infrastructure that helps our businesses survive. He is eliminating pathways for Black entrepreneurs and replacing them with backroom deals for rich friends.
This city is about hustle, not handouts. When the federal government intervenes to benefit the powerful at the expense of everyday New Yorkers, it puts all of that at risk.
If the Yankees want to claim they represent New York, they should act like it. That means solving their problems honestly, not leaning on a president whose policies have hurt Black workers and businesses. And it means respecting the rules that the rest of us are held to every day.
Because when Trump helps his allies win, it is always someone else who loses. This time, it is Black businesses and New York families. It is everyone trying to build something the right way. New Yorkers deserve better. And we’re not afraid to say so.