John Legend is making a splash, for better and worse, this week after offering his viewpoints on the upcoming presidential election. The Voice icon officially endorsed President Joe Biden while condemning former President Donald Trump.
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One thing I want to make clear is that we at Wide Open Country are politically neutral. I will not be critiquing nor supporting Legend and his comments, but it's clear based upon social media response, Legend has stirred the hornet's nest so to speak. He accused Trump of not supporting Black communities.
"He's done very little for us and he is at his core, truly, truly a racist," Legend told MSNBC's Jen Psaki.
"He's not been an ally," Legend said. "At the same time he's claiming credit for those small things, he's also saying if people are stealing something they should get shot in the middle of the store. When we protested the killing of George Floyd, he advocated for the military to shoot us in the streets."
Legend also endorsed Biden as president. He continued his critique of Trump. He said. "He's made it clear throughout his life that he believes Black people are inferior, like, he believes that to his core, in his bones. He wouldn't let us live in his buildings back in the day"
Legend continued saying that Trump is racist against minorities. "He clearly believes in a genetic hierarchy of humanity and it's racially determined," he said. "So he is a tried-and-true, dyed-in-the-wool racist. Like, in the core of his being, he's a racist, so I don't wanna hear what he has to say about what he's done for Black people. He's done for little for us. And he is, at his core, truly, truly a racist. You even hear what he says about immigration and what countries he wants people to come in from. They're all very white."
John Legend Trends Online
As you can imagine, Legend's comments garnered all kinds of reactions on X and other social media sites. Supporters thanked Legend for endorsing Biden. Meanwhile, others critiqued the singer for his comments about Trump.
One person wrote, "I don't really care who John Legend endorses or any other celebrity or politician for that matter. I vote based on policy first and what benefits me the most. I actually commend the Rock for not endorsing anyone this election cycle (so far)."
Another was a bit more vocal, "No one gives a f--k who he is voting for. He voted for Biden in 2020, and got into multiple arguments with Kanye and Kim about working with Trump, which Kanye posted publicly. Why are we even talking about John Legend?"
Again, someone else was also angry. They wrote, "Dear Mr. John Legend. Ima have to ask you to back right the f--k down when you start lying about Donald Trump. Trump aint never made me feel "inferior" and I been to Mar a Lago twice!"
