During an interview with Jen Psaki on MSNBC’s “Inside,” singer John Legend didn’t hold back in criticizing Donald Trump, labeling the former president as fundamentally racist.
Legend, delving into his involvement in criminal justice reform, shared his personal experiences growing up in Springfield, Ohio, where he witnessed firsthand the impact of the justice system on his family. He emphasized the reality of incarceration’s disruption to families and communities.
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Watch: John Legend lambasts Trump in interview with MSNBC
“I know what it feels like to have a family member in jail, I know what it feels like to wonder when they’re going to come home, I know what it feels like to feel that disruption and dislocation that happens to families and communities … it makes this issue very real to me,” Legend said.
Using Trump as an example, Legend pointed out the disparity in pre-trial treatment between the wealthy and the less fortunate. While Trump enjoys the presumption of innocence and the privilege of avoiding jail time before trials, many others languish in jail simply because they can’t afford bail.
“You watch the life and times of Donald Trump, every trial that he’s a part of, you notice he’s not spending time in jail before he goes to trial, he’s innocent until he’s proven guilty, and we all know that, but what happens with folks who can’t afford bail; they have to languish in jail before their case,” Legend said.
“All kinds of negative things happen because they don’t have maybe $500 to buy their freedom. That’s not keeping us safer, that’s saying, ‘we have a separate system for people who are poor versus people who have the means to pay this cash bail.’
Regarding Trump’s supposed advocacy for Black people, Legend dismissed it outright, asserting that Trump’s racist beliefs are deeply ingrained. He pointed to Trump’s history of derogatory comments and actions as evidence of his racist attitudes, concluding that Trump’s claims of support for the Black community are empty rhetoric.
Legend claims “he’s made it clear throughout his life that Black people are inferior.
