Trump Called Cities With Black Mayors ‘Lawless.’ Stats Say Otherwise

This might come as a surprise to you, but there’s a strong chance President Donald Trump is a racist. I know, I know, it’s a shocker. President Trump deployed the National Guard into Washington, D.C., last week after calling it a “crime-ridden wasteland.” Several Black mayors are speaking out after Trump used similar language to describe their cities despite statistics showing the crime rate going down.

According to AP News, President Trump has said cities such as Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Oakland, California, are plagued with crime and “horribly run.” Want to know what all those cities have in common? Black mayors. 

“It was not lost on any member of our organization that the mayors either were Black or perceived to be Democrats,” Van Johnson, mayor of Savannah, Georgia, and president of the African American Mayors Association (AMAA), told AP. “And that’s unfortunate. For mayors, we play with whoever’s on the field.”

After hearing President Trump’s comments about their cities, members of the AMAA compared statistics and found the numbers don’t match Trump’s rhetoric. In all the cities President Trump called out, violent crime has been trending downward. 

Trump deployed the National Guard in D.C. despite a 26% decrease in violent crime. Violent crime has been on a historic reduction in Baltimore over the last three years, homicides fell 14% between 2023 and 2024 in Los Angeles, and over the previous year, Chicago has seen a 30% decrease in homicides and a 40% decrease in shootings.

“We need to amplify our voices to confront the rhetoric that crime is just running rampant around major U.S. cities. It’s just not true,” Johnson told AP. “It’s not supported by any evidence or statistics whatsoever.”

Wait. So, President Trump is also a liar untethered by facts or reality? The hits keep coming, I tell ya. 

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott has called out President Trump for using crime as a “dog whistle” and undercutting efforts to address crime meaningfully. Scott pointed out that the Justice Department slashed $1 million in funds meant for violent crime prevention programs. 

“He has actively undermined efforts that are making a difference, saving lives in cities across the country in favor of militarized policing of Black communities,” Scott told AP via email. “We will continue to closely work with our regional federal law enforcement agencies, who have been great partners, and will do everything in our power to continue the progress despite the roadblocks this administration attempts to implement.”

Scott has touted Baltimore’s success in curbing violent crime by taking a “public health” approach. The city implemented the Comprehensive Violence Prevention Plan under Scott’s leadership in 2021. Baltimore invested more resources into community violence intervention programs and provided more services for victims of violent crime. 

Community organizations have also been essential in helping curb violence in Oakland. Over the last year, violent crime dropped overall by 29 percent, with community organizations working alongside the city’s Department of Violence Prevention being praised for the decrease. 

“These results show that we’re on the right track,” Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee said at a news conference. “We’re going to keep building on this progress with the same comprehensive approach that got us here.”

It sounds like actively investing in communities and tackling crime at its root through skills training programs and social assistance is a more effective strategy than deploying the freaking National Guard. Who could’ve known? The group of Black mayors is actively watching how Mayor Muriel Bowser is handling the federalization of the D.C. police force, with Johnson praising how she’s dealt with the unprecedented takeover. 

“Black mayors are resilient. We are intrinsically children of struggle,” Johnson told AP. “We learn to adapt quickly, and I believe that we will and we are.”

SEE ALSO:

Trump’s National Guard Deployment Is A Direct Attack On Black DC

Black D.C. Is The Stage For Trump’s Authoritarian Rehearsal