The racist ‘one-drop rule’ lives on in how Trump talks about Black politicians and whiteness in America

Donald Trump watches a video of Vice President Kamala Harris during a campaign rally in Las Vegas on Sept. 13, 2024. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images by Marya T. Mtshali, Harvard University Americans who heard former President Donald Trump claim that Vice President Kamala Harris previously identified as “not Black” in a July 2024 interview may wonder why he continuously emphasized former President Barack Obama’s blackness during his first presidential campaign. As a scholar focused on race and gender issues, I recognize that these seemingly inconsistent definitions of blackness are not inconsistent at all. They demonstrate a consistent position on whiteness. In both cases, Trump implies that the race of his opponent is all voters need to know to determine their characters. It is an ideology that normalizes the dominance and privilege of White Americans within a racial hierarchy. Making whiteness great again In the American imagination, White people are often perceived as being more authentically American than other racial groups. Additionally, Trump and some of his followers see many of America’s strides on civil rights as detrimental to White people. Trump has said that “anti-White feeling” is a significant problem in America. And Republican voters, who are overwhelmingly White, are more...