President Donald Trump delivered remarks on Thursday at the White House at a special ceremony commemorating Black History Month, elevating the contributions of Black Americans have made to the causes of freedom and justice for all.
“Today we pay tribute to [the] generations of Black legends, warriors, and patriots who helped drive our country forward to greatness,” he said.
In attendance were prominent Black Americans like golf legend Tiger Woods, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., pro-life advocate and niece of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Alveda King, and newly minted Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Scott Turner.
“I’m proud to say that more Black Americans are serving in the U.S. House than at any time since 1870,” Trump remarked.
He thanked the crowd for attending the event and elevated a message of unity for Americans of all colors and creeds.
“The last administration tried to reduce all of American history to a single year: 1619,” Trump said. “But under our administration, we honor the indispensable role Black Americans have always played in the cause of another date: 1776!”
The president paid homage to a Revolutionary War patriot named Prince Estabrook, who was wounded in a skirmish at Lexington while under the command of Colonel John Parker at the onset of the war in 1775.
Trump said Estabrook would be honored with a statue in the new National Garden of American Heroes – a special project kick-started by President Trump.
“His legacy will endure,” Trump promised.
Despite the evils of past slavery, President Trump noted that because of the “steadfast courage and faith of so many patriots of all colors,” the nation we know and love today is now unified as “one nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all!”
Additionally, Trump reflected on the critical presidential election of 2024, where Black Americans showed up in force at the ballot box to reelect the president.
“Just a few months ago the people in the room and millions of other Black Americans played their own part in the American story when you went to the voting booth and restored a nice, solid government,” he said. “…I’m proud to say that we received more votes from Black Americans than any Republican president ever.”
