Boxing promoter Don King urged his fellow African-Americans to support Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in a speech delivered in his infamous, inimitable style on Wednesday. King’s remarks included a seemingly inadvertent use of the N word.
“The spirit is loud and clear that we will create a whole new system. We will take this system apart, and we will make America great again,” King said, referencing Trump’s campaign slogan.
King’s speech served as Trump’s introduction at a meeting organized by Pastor Darrell Scott. The meeting was held at Scott’s church, the New Spirit Revival Center, in King’s hometown of Cleveland. It was also attended by other clergy members.
Speaking for more than 10 minutes, King largely focused on the idea that Trump would take down “the system.”
“This is a coming of a man who has taken on a system, a system that is awesome and ingeniously put together, a system of control,” King said. “The mindset, the behavior, the attitudes, the institutions, the law. And then, they have the judges and the courts that uphold the law that makes right wrong and wrong right.”
The meeting was part of Trump’s effort to increase his outreach to the African-American community, in which he is deeply unpopular, polls show. King went on to say that Trump’s replacing the old “system” would benefit both minorities and white women.
“You’ve got to understand what I’m trying to say to you is that the white woman — and I put it in this category so you understand what I’m saying — the white woman and the slave, the people of color,” King said. “When this system was created, … the white woman did not have the rights, and she still don’t have her rights. Those are the left-outs. Donald Trump says, ‘No, we’re going back to inclusiveness. Everybody counts,’” he added.
King further accused the media of trying to misrepresent Trump.
“When I see them try to ridiculize him or to try to ostracize and pervert, I want you to understand every white woman should cast their vote for Donald Trump,” King said. “Not for Donald Trump the man, but to knock out the system and help him to get their rights.”
At multiple points during his speech, King directly addressed the African-American community. He suggested that black voters “have nothing” after years of backing Democrats.
“I’m appealing to all the blacks because their vote is given away cavalierly, lackadaisically, with no redeeming factor,” said King.
King, who was wearing a jacket studded with rhinestones and holding an array of miniature flags, including the American and Israeli standards, went on to describe how Trump’s “new system” would look.
“It encompasses all women, people of color, blacks, and all freedom-loving people coming together to support themselves under the leadership of the dynamic, the human man that will fight for your rights, Donald Trump,” King said.
King included several anecdotes from his career during the speech. He also briefly alluded to his time in prison, where he spent three years after being convicted for stomping a man to death over a gambling debt in 1966. Ohio’s governor pardoned him in 1983.
The boxing promoter concluded by describing a conversation he had with the late singer Michael Jackson. King seemed to accidentally say the N word while recalling the moment.
“I told Michael Jackson, I said, ‘If you’re poor, you’re a poor Negro. I would use the N word, but if you’re rich, you are a rich Negro. If you are intelligent, intellectual, you’re an intellectual Negro. If you’re a dancing and sliding and gliding n***** — I mean Negro — you are a dancing and sliding and gliding Negro. So, better not alienate because you cannot assimilate. … You’re going to be a Negro till you die.’”
Trump took the stage after King spoke. At several points during Trump’s speech, King interjected to shout about the “system.” As the event was ending, King gave Trump the prizefighter treatment: He grabbed Trump’s fist and held it above their heads as the crowd applauded.
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