Americans of all walks of life are witnessing continuing political and cultural shifts in our nation. While these shifts began long before last year’s presidential election, the return of the Trump administration to power has accelerated the pace of changes impacting the nation economically, politically and culturally. The way Americans interpret these changes often comes down to political persuasion and alignment. Too often, politics overrides sound Christian doctrine, economic vulnerability and racial identity. 

The term “Make America Great Again” has a specific meaning when viewed through a racial and moral lens. For many in the Black community, MAGA is more than a catchy phrase meant to excite a conservative movement. Through this moral lens, MAGA is seen as a political movement whose immoral goal is to rebrand discriminatory laws, racial violence and systemic barriers reminiscent of the nation’s dark past. On the surface, Christian talking points persist, but many refuse to be blind to the corruption, cruelty and hypocrisy beneath them. There is talk of salvation, but no evidence of Christ-like discipleship in defending the poor, the oppressed and strangers, including immigrants. 

There is frequent talk of strengthening the border, reviving the economy and developing an “America First” posture in foreign policy. Yet, through this moral lens, there continues to be unjust harassment and suffering within the Brown community. The killing of Renee Good in Minnesota at the hands of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent is being covered up and justified by Trump administration officials. Some conservatives deny that racist intentions exist within the MAGA movement, but claims of “reverse discrimination” continue to be voiced by a U.S. president who has said civil rights-era protections have “hurt” white Americans. 

In an interview with The New York Times, President Donald Trump stated, “White people were very badly treated, where they did extremely well and they were not invited to go into a university to college,” referring to affirmative action in college admissions. Vice President JD Vance has also backed claims that diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives have harmed job prospects for white men. He recently shared an essay calling DEI “a deliberate program of discrimination primarily against white men.” 

When proponents talk about reverse discrimination, the goal of “Make America Great Again” is to return to a society with little or no protections against discrimination in public and private institutions. Derrick Johnson, president of the NAACP, pushed back against those claims. Johnson said there is “no evidence that white men were discriminated against as a result of the civil rights movement, the Civil Rights Act, and efforts to rectify the long history of this country denying access to people based on race in every measurable category,” in a statement to The New York Times. 

For those unfamiliar with the horrors of the Jim Crow era, the shift underway may not feel like a sufficient warning of what lies ahead in the months and years to come. Even more troubling, MAGA-driven misinformation and the rebranding of history may become effective with young Blacks beginning to believe and accept it. As the nation observes Martin Luther King Jr. Day, questions must be asked: Are we fulfilling his legacy? Are young Blacks drifting away from his message? As the nation shifts as a result of the conservative MAGA movement, how is that shift being resisted? 

As discrimination is rebranded, these political and cultural changes are also being viewed through Dr. King’s perspective. While he promoted nonviolence, Dr. King was still radical. He confronted hypocrisy and respectfully held white counterparts accountable in his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” a text every person of color should read. Members of the Black community cannot afford to view nationwide ICE raids as someone else’s fight. Dr. King made his position clear when he wrote, “It was illegal to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler’s Germany. Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers.” 

One reason the conservative movement has been able to shift the nation politically and culturally backward is that the nation has drifted away from Dr. King’s legacy. 

The writer is the author of “God Bless Our Divided America.”