Trump is the first president in 116 years not invited to the NAACP convention
The NAACP will not invite President Donald Trump to deliver remarks at its annual convention next month
The group claimed in a press release that the sitting president is “attacking” democracy and civil rights, and that he “believes more in the fascist playbook than the United States Constitution.”
The NAACP, one of the nation’s largest civil rights groups, will hold its 116th annual national convention July 12-16 in Charlotte.
“For 116 years, the NAACP has invited the sitting president of the United States to address the NAACP National Convention, regardless of political party,” Derrick Johnson, NAACP president and CEO, said in the statement Monday.
“This has nothing to do with political party,” Johnson said. “Our mission is to advance civil rights, and the current president has made it clear that his mission is to eliminate them.”
The NAACP, according to Johnson, is a nonpartisan organization that “always welcomes those who believe in democracy and the Constitution.”
In a statement, the president of the civil rights organization said that, at this moment, “it is evident” that Trump is “attacking” both civil rights and democracy.
He noted that there is a rich history of Republican and Democratic presidents who have addressed the NAACP convention, from Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower to Ronald Reagan, Barack Obama “and beyond.”
Last July, then-President Joe Biden made his first public appearance just after Trump’s first shooting attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, at the 115th NAACP convention in Las Vegas.
On Monday,In his statement, Johnson cited the wave of “unconstitutional executive orders” issued by the White House in the weeks following Trump’s inauguration on January 20 as one of the reasons he failed the invitation test. Dozens of orders are currently blocked under judicial review.
Some, he said, “oppress voters and roll back federal civil rights protections.”
Trump, Johnson continued, believes more in “the fascist strategy” than in the U.S. Constitution.
“This strategy is radical and un-American.”
She claimed the president “illegally turned the military against our communities” and “continually undermines every pillar of our democracy to make himself more powerful and personally benefit from the United States government.”
However, the convention is intended to be a “safe space for all people, regardless of political ideology, who believe in multiracial democracy and the ideal of building a more perfect union,” Johnson continued.
The NAACP’s annual convention, Johnson claims, has always been a space where people from across the United States come together to “plan our advocacy strategies” and mobilize to advance a “for all” agenda based on the ideals of civil rights and democracy.
“It would be a waste of time and energy to give a platform to fascism, which would be unacceptable,” the NAACP head wrote.
The NAACP advocates, agitates, and litigates for the civil rights of Black people.
In recent months, the NAACP has filed multiple lawsuits against Trump.
In April, for example, the group sued to block the Department of Education from withholding federal funding for schools that did not eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, arguing that the department was prohibiting legal efforts to provide equal opportunities for Black students.

