The gulf of America 

“Make Racists Afraid Again.”

The anti-fascist's answer to the infamous red hat, this slogan rose to prominence in the early days of Trump’s first term, using his own words against him. But eight years on, and it’s the racists who are laughing now: racism, which never went anywhere, is once again in vogue, and it’s scary and infuriating.

Trump’s comeback is no ordinary political tale, and while he heads up a system that asserts its authority on stolen land, a so-called democracy that is illegitimate no matter who takes the reins, there is nothing normal about this moment.

He might not have worn a pointy white hat on Inauguration Day, but look no further than the very first actions of his new term, pretty much tailormade to tell racist a-holes that they’re back on top.

Violent, criminal bigots? No matter, they’re in the club, at least that’s what his pardon of all January 6 insurgents tells us.

Casual racism has been a hallmark of Trump’s style since long before he rode down the golden escalator in 2015 and told the crowd that Mexico is sending criminals and rapists as well as, perhaps, some good people.

But it’s not just the dogwhistles - or bullhorns - he uses. This time around, he has virtually no one in his circle to restrain him from acting on his hate and narcissism. On the contrary, he’s got plenty of his own ilk thrusting paper after paper in front of his pen, gleefully watching him undo strides that Onkwehón:we and others have fought so hard to achieve.

Take his efforts to kneecap the rules in place to promote equity in hiring and curb discrimination. He banned government hiring initiatives that level the playing field and give groups like Onkwehón:we a fair shot despite all the hurdles and discrimination, inspiring massive companies that are sucking up to him to follow suit.

And a rule going back 60 years to the Lyndon B. Johnson days that bans discrimination in the hiring practices of government contractors, representing a huge swath of the work force? That was on the chopping block, too.

In its place is a witch hunt for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies at all manner of agencies and even corporations - investigations trying to root out hiring managers seeking a diverse workforce.

Why now and not eight years ago, when he also held power? Well, something feels different now.

Even before the election, congressman Tim Burchett felt emboldened enough to deride Kamala Harris, a prosecutor turned attorney general turned senator turned vice-president who is also a woman of colour, as a “DEI hire.” Why? Because she dared to run against the mediocre (being generous) rich white guy who leads the cult.

Now, with the election out of the way, terror grips minority groups as ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) raids schools, looking to scoop up “illegal” children.

The racists forget, of course, that this land is not theirs to begin with. They know that, but they don’t care.

And while the Trump administration is turning over every rock in search of “illegals” invading “their” country, Onkwehón:we are also being targeted. Navajo Nation officials said this week at least 15 of their own had been swept up in raids. People are panicking that ICE could interfere with Akwesasró:non on the US side, especially in light of controversial land settlement agreements with New York State.

And in a terrifying development, Trump signed an executive order this week dictating that some undocumented migrants will be sent to the naval base Guantanamo Bay - the prison camp the US sent those it deemed terrorists in the years following 9/11, where torture was rampant and constitutional law can scarcely reach.

In Trump’s America, anything is possible, except justice. What does that mean for the rest of the world? A lot, with racists everywhere getting the memo, and the pretty sorry state of everything these days putting populations on a search for easy answers, hurtling toward their worst impulses.

Trump’s instant moves to leave the Paris climate agreement and the World Health Organization spell doom for Mother Nature and her children, already under grave threat.

And the tariffs? What will happen to the Hertel line, a landmark project billed as economic reconciliation in which Kahnawake is a partner, when Trump’s tariffs raise the cost of the electricity we’re selling by 25 percent? We don’t know... yet.

And something tells us Mohawk Council’s Hail Mary move to send Trump a letter won’t do much to change his mind about Onkwehón:we rights or the value of Kahnawake a business partner.

It’s easy to see what little shame the Trump brigade has when they eagerly threaten to take control of Canada, Greenland, and the Panama Canal; when they unilaterally rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America; and when they take the Indigenous-named Denali mountain peak in Alaska, the highest on all of Turtle Island - a name that was only recently acknowledged by the US - and change it back to Mount McKinley, as it was “named” by a white gold prospector in honour of an American president.

The system is dirty, but this is no ordinary driver of it. If the world was going in the wrong direction already, the mighty United States has lunged for the wheel to swerve it off a cliff.

After all, the president’s even-wealthier benefactor, Elon Musk, gave an Inauguration Day crowd a Nazi salute, whether on purpose or not. He then spoke at a far-right party’s gathering in Germany to deliver the message that people should liberate themselves from guilt for the past - and yes, he was talking about Nazism.

Shedding accountability like a generational change of clothes shreds culpability and undermines a better future for all, so that’s a big problem. It’s no different than here on Turtle Island, where those benefitting from hundreds of years of abuse and genocide of Indigenous peoples have a responsibility to make it right.

The racists can’t change that.

Ted Staff