February 10, 2017

On the heels of escalating tension with prominent civil rights leaders and just before his inauguration as President,  Donald J. Trump met with the oldest son of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The meeting accented the public feud President-elect Trump is having with Representative John Lewis of Georgia.

The meeting was an effort to calm the fractured distrust of many minorities for the President-elect. He has contended President Obama’s country of birth, received support from white supremacists, argued for stronger  immigration laws  that could divide families and backed other policies that counter minority interests. He posed for photos with Martin Luther King III but did not respond to questions from reporters regarding related matters.

The closed-door meeting lasted nearly an hour, and he then provided opportunities for photos. Mr. King felt that the session was beneficial for civil rights and emphasized the President-elect’s desire to work together for all Americans. Mr. King plans to hold him accountable to those promises. He also down played the feud between Mr. Lewis and the President-elect, stating that both parties made statements in the heat of the moment. Mr. Lewis threatened to boycott the election and challenged the validity of election results due to alleged Russian hacking.

Mr. King suggested that the government offer a free photo identification card so that Americans could vote even if they do not have a driver’s license. The President-elect seemed open to the idea. However, some leaders felt that these steps were not enough to calm their fears. Rev. Sharpton explained that he thought the President-elect was only concerned about public appearances and that he did not care about the real issues.

About 8 percent of African-American voters cast ballots for President-elect Trump. An estimated 75 percent of blacks think that race relations will deteriorate while he is President.

Sean Spicer, the cabinet’s press secretary, indicated that the President-elect would not ignore the attacks from Mr. Lewis. However, he seemed to scale back his comments against the Representative within hours.

The nation is focused on civil rights issues due to tense race relations amid the current political atmosphere. If you feel that your rights have been violated, talk to our  civil rights lawyers  to find out what steps you should take.