CHICAGO – Former President and Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump attended the National Association of Black Journalists convention Wednesday in Chicago, where he participated in a conversation with journalists and engage in a Q&A with political journalists.

Trump’s visit raised eyebrows and divided NABJ members while renewing scrutiny of his treatment of the press, particularly journalists of color.

Trump’s appearance immediately became heated, with the former president sparring with interviewer Rachel Scott of ABC News and accusing her of giving him a “very rude introduction” with a tough first question about his past criticism of Black people and Black journalists, his attack on Black prosecutors and the dinner he had at his Florida club with a white supremacist.

The Republican former president also claimed that Harris, the first Black woman and Asian American to serve as vice president, had in the past only promoted her Indian heritage.

“I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn Black and now she wants to be known as Black. So, I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?” Trump said while addressing the group’s annual convention.

Trump has repeatedly attacked his opponents and critics on the basis of race. He rose to prominence in Republican politics by propagating false theories that President Barack Obama, the nation’s first Black president, was not born in the United States. “Birtherism,” as it became known, was just the start of Trump’s history of questioning the credentials and qualifications of Black politicians.

During his presidency, Trump famously bashed CNN’s Abby Phillip for asking “stupid questions” and accused NBC’s Yamiche Alcindor of asking a “racist” question. He also called New York Times reporter April Ryan “a loser.”

Trump continued his attacks on Scott’s network, ABC News, which he has been arguing should not host the next presidential debate, despite his earlier agreement to that.

The Republican also repeated his false claim that immigrants in the country illegally are “taking Black jobs.” When pushed by Scott on what constituted a “Black job,” Trump responded by saying was “any job,” drawing groans from the room.

At one point he said, “I have been the best president for the Black population since Abraham Lincoln.”

The audience responded with a mix of boos and some applause.

Trump’s appearance stirs controversy, debate

The former president’s invitation to address the organization sparked an intense internal debate among NABJ that spilled online. Organizations for journalists of color typically invite presidential candidates to speak at their summer gatherings in election years.

“Sometimes there is no two sides. There’s the truth and there’s lies,” said Maudelyn Ihejirika, a retired columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and a former president of NABJ Chicago.

Ihejirika called Trump’s invite a shock to the system.

“He draws a white supremacist audience and following, and this is the type of following that inviting him could infiltrate, be welcomed by this particular candidate to a Black journalist convention,” Ihejirika said.

Influential journalists posted some blunt takes on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

“I would like to unwelcome @NABJ for surprising Chicago with this Trump news, a man who has threatened Chicago with state violence in his stump speeches — and attracts a white supremacist following to a Black affinity space,” wrote Morgan Elise Johnson of The Tribe.

From April Ryan: “The reports of attacks on Black women White House correspondents by the then president of the United States are not myth or conjecture, but fact. To have a presumed orchestrated session with the former president is an affront to what this organization stands for and a slap in the face to the Black women journalists (NABJ journalists of the year) who had to protect themselves from the wrath of this Republican presidential nominee who is promoting an authoritarian agenda that plans to destroy this nation and her democracy with his Project 2025. I object to this NABJ session with Donald Trump in Chicago.”

One of the convention co-chairs, Karen Attiah, even announced Tuesday she was stepping down.

However, many see value in Trump’s appearance at the convention.

NABJ President Ken Lemon posted: “While NABJ does not endorse political candidates as a journalism organization, we understand the serious work of our members, and welcome the opportunity for them to ask the tough questions that will provide the truthful answers Black Americans want and need to know.”

Ahead of the former president’s visit, city officials stepped up security.

“We’re going to be prepared as a city if he decides to actually arrive in Chicago, to make sure that the nastiness and the iniquitousness formation that he brings that doesn’t stain the soul of Chicago,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said.

On the eve of Trump’s visit, his campaign distanced itself from Project 2025, a Heritage Foundation document laying out plans for the next conservative administration.

Said the campaign, “Reports of Project 2025’s demise would be greatly welcomed and should serve as notice to anyone or any group trying to misrepresent their influence with President Trump and his campaign— it will not end well for you.”

Chicago organizers announced a protest against Trump outside the NABJ convention. In 2016, demonstrators forced him to cancel a rally at the University of Illinois Chicago.

Meanwhile on the Democratic side, likely nominee Kamala Harris so far has not accepted an invitation to address NABJ. She is, however, reportedly close to naming a running mate.

According to Reuters, Harris and her pick for vice president will hit the campaign trail next week.

The Harris Campaign released the following statement Wednesday before Trump’s speech at the NABJ Convention:

Ahead of Donald Trump’s conversation at NABJ today – let’s remember exactly who this man is. Not only does Donald Trump have a history of demeaning NABJ members and honorees who remain pillars of the Black press, he also has a history of attacking the media and working against the vital role the press play in our democracy.

“We know Donald Trump is going to lie about his record and the real harm he’s caused Black communities at NABJ – and he must be called out.

“He will lie about the skyrocketing Black unemployment and Black uninsured rates our communities suffered from when he was president.

“He’ll lie about his failed response to the pandemic that cost Black Americans our lives and our livelihoods.

“He’ll lie about skyrocketing crime under his leadership and make grand claims about putting checks in people’s pockets when we know his Project 2025 agenda would cost our families thousands.

“Black voters see Donald Trump’s lies and empty pandering for what they are – and they will hold him accountable at the polls this November.

“In contrast, Black voters will hear from Democratic leaders at the NABJ convention about the promises the Biden-Harris administration has kept to our community: millions of jobs created for Black workers, record high Black employment, support for Black-owned small businesses, and billions in student debt relief working to close the racial wealth gap. The choice could not be more clear.”

Harris Campaign