Will.i.am Says It’s An “Insult” For Donald Trump To Compare His Work For The Black Community To That Of Abraham Lincoln

Ted Johnson
Updated ·2 min read
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Will.i.am debuted a new pro-Joe Biden video this week along with Jennifer Hudson that has an uplifting message, but he also was sharply critical of President Donald Trump.

In a conversation with The Washington Post Live, the Black Eyed Peas singer took issue with Trump’s claim that he has done more for the Black community than any president since Abraham Lincoln.

The Post‘s Robin Givhan asked will.i.am whether he felt that Trump was drawing the support of young African American and Latino men.

“Most of the people that I see hopping the bandwagon, it is tax based. …It’s about money. It’s not about decency. It’s not about preparation for tomorrow,” he said. “That is what I see. And they are believing the lies and the shenanigans and his empty promises and his tall claims of how great he is. And comparing himself to Abraham Lincoln. ‘He’s the greatest president to the Black community since Abraham Lincoln because Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves.’ And his connection with freeing prisoners means that he sees the Black community still as slaves and now free. Get out of here with that bro. No. No. No. You have no idea how great the Black community is to compare yourself to Abraham Lincoln. This is a different Black community now. You are not freeing us. What are you talking about? That’s an insult.”

Related: Black communities need more investment, Will.i.am says

The president has been trying to improve his share of the vote by touting his signing of criminal justice reform legislation in 2018.

But his campaign also has highlighted support from some Black performers, including Lil Wayne and Ice Cube. The latter made clear that he met with administration officials to talk about their plans for the Black community, but that it was not an endorsement.

Meanwhile, the rapper 50 Cent expressed his support for Trump, railing against Biden’s tax plan, but he later backtracked from those comments.

Of Ice Cube, will.i.am said that he is “forgetting that [Trump is] a liar, he’s forgetting that he’s a used car salesman, he’s forgetting he’s full of shit, and he’s forgetting that everything he said he went back on.”

Will.i.am’s 2008 video, Yes, We Can, became an anthem of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. The Biden video, called The Love, has drawn almost 34 million views on YouTube.

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