Derrick Johnson, the president and CEO of the NAACP, took an apparent jab at former President Trump’s “Black job” remarks in his opening statement at the Democratic National Convention on Monday.
“I’m Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, and I’m here to do my Black job,” Johnson said in his opening remarks.
Vice President Harris’s campaign shared Johnson’s quip on social media platform X as the Democratic National Convention kicked off on Monday. President Biden, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and other prominent Democrats are expected to speak Monday night at the convention in Chicago.
Johnson’s comment is a reference to Trump’s “Black job” comments during his debate with President Biden in June. In response to a question regarding Black voters, Trump took aim at Biden’s stance on immigration.
“The fact is that his big kill on the Black people is the millions of people that he’s allowed to come in through the border,” Trump said during the debate.
“They’re taking Black jobs now — and it could be 18, it could be 19 and even 20 million people. They’re taking Black jobs, and they’re taking Hispanic jobs, and you haven’t seen it yet, but you’re gonna see something that’s going to be the worst in our history,” he added.
Democrats quickly pounced on Trump’s remarks, with Biden’s campaign at the time hitting the former president over his comments in an ad campaign. Black Americans also took to social media to question what Trump meant by “Black jobs.”
Other public figures also took aim at the former president over the comment, with Olympic gymnastics star Simone Biles posting “I love my Black job” after winning gold medals in her events.
Johnson, the NAACP president and CEO, also talked about the history of electing Black Americans to public office. He spoke about the historic races in that elected former Detroit Mayor Coleman Young, former Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley and former Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson as the first Black mayors of their respective cities.
“Tonight, we celebrate the power of the collective of what is possible when we are all in for all people. But as we do, let us not forget the history that preceded this moment, or the history makers who prepared us for it,” he added.
