Bishop Talbert Swan

He darn sure wasn’t white

The Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. was an American patriot. Charlie Kirk was an unrepentant racist. Charlie Kirk built a platform trafficking in division and coded racism, while Jesse Jackson put his life on the line expanding democracy, fighting for justice, and lifting the humanity of all people. One weaponized hate. The other lifted humanity.

The 🦝 Pulpit is alive and well! twitter.com/i/spaces/1DGle…

The tragedy of this moment is not simply that a Supreme Court justice is defending a powerful political ally. The tragedy is that a man who sits in a seat once occupied by Thorogood Marshall, one of the greatest champions of civil rights, has always used that power to undermine the very freedoms that made his own ascent possible. The resemblance between Uncle Ruckus, a fictional, satirical, anti-Black character from ‘The Boondocks,’ who believes he is a white man suffering from "revitiligo," and Clarence Thomas is painfully familiar: a man so eager to defend the very systems that harm his own people that he becomes their most enthusiastic spokesperson, echoing white supremacist talking points while dismissing the lived realities of the community he comes from. Uncle Thomas sits where a legal giant once sat, a man who argued for the constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act and devoted his life to expanding democracy for people who had been locked out of it. The legacy of Thurgood Marshall was built through sacrifice, courage, and the blood, sweat, and tears of generations who fought segregation, voter suppression, and white supremacy. Yet time and again, Thomas has positioned himself on the opposite side of that struggle. In my view, he has been one of the most dangerous Black figures in modern American politics since the day he was confirmed, not because he holds conservative views, but because his judicial philosophy has repeatedly aligned with efforts to dismantle civil rights protections, weaken voting rights, and roll back the legal gains our ancestors fought and died to secure. History is filled with painful archetypes. Thomas‘ career is eerily reminiscent of the loyal servant who protects the master’s house even when it burns the village around him. The character Stephen in ‘Django Unchained’ captured that tragic role perfectly: fiercely protective of a system that was never designed for his freedom. What makes this moment so bitter is the contrast. The seat once used to expand justice has been used for the past three decades to shrink it. And when a Black man uses one of the most powerful legal positions in the nation to rationalize the erosion of the very rights that lifted generations of Black Americans toward equality, the criticism should not be muted. It should be brutally honest. Clarence Thomas has betrayed the struggle of Black people. He’s been a defender of white supremacy, an enabler of injustice, an apologist for oppression, a turncoat on civil rights, a beneficiary of the movement he now undermines, and a man who was helped up the ladder and pulled it up behind him. And when history is written in full, the question will not simply be whether Clarence Thomas was conservative. The question will be whether he used the power entrusted to him to advance justice or to help dismantle it.

The man in the White House has recklessly taken this nation into a dangerous conflict, putting American lives at risk around the world and potentially here at home. What makes this even more disturbing is the fact that this is a man who has never known the sacrifice of military service. Donald Trump is a draft dodger. He avoided service during the Vietnam War with a series of deferments and a convenient diagnosis of “bone spurs.” Even more telling is the legacy he comes from. His own grandfather, Friedrich Trump, was deported from Germany after fleeing the country to avoid mandatory military service. Military duty was considered a civic obligation, and he ran from it. Yet today we are expected to trust the judgment of a man from a lineage of draft dodgers to make life-and-death decisions about war. Black Americans and others whose patriotism has too often been questioned have shed blood for this nation in every war America has fought. Families like mine know the cost of service. Generations have worn the uniform, fought for this country, and in many cases given their lives for freedoms that were often denied to them at home. Now the safety of the nation, and the lives of American citizens globally, are being gambled by someone who never had the courage to serve and who treats war like a personal power play. What makes this moment even more dangerous is that Congress, the branch of government constitutionally charged with declaring war and providing oversight, appears either unwilling or unable to hold him accountable. The guardrails that are supposed to restrain reckless leadership are failing in real time. So here we are: a nation potentially dragged into another war by a man whose own family history is defined not by sacrifice, but by running from it. And the rest of us are left to live with the consequences of decisions made by someone who has never had to risk his own life for this country. These are dangerous times when the power to wage war rests in the hands of a reckless leader who never had the courage to serve in one.

Let’s talk about PATRIOTISM because the hypocrisy is staggering. Donald Trump’s grandfather, Friedrich Trump, fled Germany to avoid mandatory military service. Bavarian authorities later expelled him in 1905 for dodging the draft and leaving the country illegally. He was literally deported and forced back to the United States. Fast forward one generation. His grandson, Donald Trump, avoided serving in Vietnam with a conveniently timed diagnosis of “bone spurs.” The irony. Trump is only in America because his draft-dodging grandfather was deported from his home country. His mother wasn’t even born in the United States. Yet he demonizes immigrants, pushes mass deportations, and beats the drums of war. Meanwhile, Black Americans have fought and died in every war this nation has ever waged, from the Revolutionary War to the present day, often while being denied the very freedoms they were fighting to defend. In my own family, four generations have served in the United States Armed Forces, my father, my uncles, my wife, my daughter, my cousins. Members of my family gave their lives serving this nation. So how dare a man from a family lineage of draft dodgers question the patriotism of people whose families have shed blood for this country. Imagine that. A man willing to start wars… whose own family history shows they were too afraid to fight in them.

The SAVE America Act is being presented as a simple “show your ID to vote” requirement, but that is misleading. The bill goes far beyond basic identification. It would require specific proof of citizenship documents that millions of eligible voters do not have readily available, eliminate common registration methods like mail and online registration, and force people to appear in person with paperwork many would have to pay to obtain. History shows that voter suppression often hides behind the language of “election integrity.” During the Jim Crow era, poll taxes, literacy tests, and complicated paperwork requirements were used to make voting harder for certain groups of people. The SAVE America Act follows a similar pattern by creating costly, bureaucratic hurdles that could prevent millions of eligible Americans from registering or voting. Voting should be secure, but it should also be accessible. When the process becomes unnecessarily burdensome, it begins to resemble the same kinds of barriers used during the Jim Crow era to suppress the vote. Here are the FACTS regarding the SAVE America Act… Requires proof of citizenship papers to vote Driver’s licenses alone would no longer be enough to register Most REAL IDs would not qualify as proof of citizenship Military IDs and Tribal IDs alone would not be accepted Married women and others who changed names face extra documentation hurdles Forces voters to present citizenship documents in person Effectively eliminates mail and online voter registration Allows federal agencies to access state voter rolls Could lead to purges of eligible voters based on faulty citizenship data Makes registering to vote more expensive (many would need passports) Threatens election officials with criminal penalties for paperwork mistakes Creates bureaucratic barriers that make voting harder for millions

A former Fox News host, who paid to settle a sexual assault case, is Secretary of the Department of Defense. The former head of World Wrestling Entertainment, who is accused of covering up the sexual abuse of minors, is over the Department of Education. A heroin addict accused of sexual assault by the family babysitter, is over the Department of Health & Human Services. A cattle rancher with a two year community college degree has been nominated as secretary of Homeland Security. A convicted felon and adjudicated rapist is president of the yet-to-be United States. Y’all need to shut up about Black people being ‘DEI hires.’

@newstruthliz There are no spelling errors! CAUCACITY is spelled correctly. Is the audacity of white supremacy. Get yourself an urban dictionary.

Aside from the spelling errors...this is absolutely the truth.

Ketanji Brown Jackson graduated magna cum laude from Harvard-Radcliffe College and cum laude from Harvard Law School where she was an editor of the Harvard Law Review. She had 20 years experience as a lawyer and 10 years experience as a federal judge when she was nominated for the Supreme Court. They called her a DEI hire. Mark Wayne Mullin has a high school diploma and a 2 year community college degree in construction management, no military or law enforcement service, and was a cow-calf rancher. He was nominated by Trump as the secretary of Homeland Security. They have the caucacity to call this meritocracy.

It is the height of hypocrisy for those who have wrapped their religion in whiteness, deified white identity, and baptized white supremacy in the name of Jesus, to accuse Black people of putting race above the kingdom simply because we affirm our God-given dignity and celebrate the divine beauty of our Blackness. Let’s be clear — no one has placed race above Christianity more than the architects of the myth of whiteness. No one has lifted color over the kingdom more consistently than the empire builders who fashioned a white Jesus, painted white angels, and populated Scripture with white biblical characters. That wasn’t theological fidelity — it was cultural theft, colonial propaganda, and doctrinal whitewashing. When Black people say “Black is beautiful,” when we honor our ancestors, when we teach our children that they are fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God — we are not exalting race above righteousness. We are reclaiming what the Western world tried to strip away. We are correcting the lies embedded in centuries of racist theology. Read entire article here: @TalbertSwan/deconstructing-the-hypocrisy-of-the-race-before-christianity-accusation-25ec9841d99e" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">medium.com/@TalbertSwan/d…

Why do white folks get triggered when we affirm Black humanity?! twitter.com/i/spaces/1dKrP…

A growing number of Black preachers have chosen political loyalty, proximity to whiteness, and alignment with authoritarian power over prophetic truth, historical honesty, and responsibility to Black people. They are not merely silent in the face of injustice. They are actively hostile to those who refuse to be silent. Black liberation theology, justice-centered preaching, and sermons that name oppression are being attacked not by white evangelicals alone, but by Black preachers who have decided that defending Donald Trump and white Christian nationalism is more important than defending Black lives, Black history, and Black dignity. This is not accidental. This is ideological collaboration. These sellout pulpits dismiss Black liberation theology as “divisive,” “unbiblical,” or “political,” while simultaneously excusing or outright defending policies that are actively harming Black communities right now. They condemn prophetic preaching as “woke,” yet show no such concern for the morality of power when that power is erasing history, stripping healthcare, silencing oversight, and crushing the most vulnerable. Read entire article (@TalbertSwan/the-rise-of-the-sellout-pulpit-246ccde20232" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">medium.com/@TalbertSwan/t…)

The errant executive at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue appealed to Iranians to overthrow their authoritarian government. Americans need to take the same advice regarding ours.

The Liar-In-Chief stood before the nation at the #StateOfTheUnion and claimed to be a peacemaker, falsely stating that he stopped 8 wars. Four days later the bombs fell on Iran. You cannot brag about ending wars while lighting new fires. You cannot wrap violence in a flag and call it faith. And you certainly cannot invoke the Prince of Peace while escalating conflict. The hypocrisy is staggering. What is even more disturbing is watching people who claim Christ defend deception and justify destruction. Peace is not a campaign line. Truth is not optional. And war is not righteous simply because your political idol declares it so. History will remember who cheered and who told the truth.

White “Christians” want us to think that affirming the humanity of Black people is “ethnic idolatry” when they have always worshipped whiteness! twitter.com/i/spaces/1RKZz…

Another voicemail. Another triggered, Trump supporting white man.  Frank Sciacca (facebook.com/frank.sciacca.…), an Italian man from Brooklyn now living in Florida, called my church in a profanity-laced rage because I condemned Trump’s racist depiction of President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama as apes. His response? Calling me a “dumb f***ing monkey.” Forty-six years old. Listens to hip-hop. Claims to have Black friends. Probably says “I can’t be racist, I love Black culture.” Yet the moment a Black man calls out racism, he reaches for the oldest racist slur in the book. That blows up the entire myth: Liking Black music doesn’t make you anti-racist. Having Black friends doesn’t cleanse a racist mouth. Consuming Black culture is not the same as respecting Black people. And calling a Black church to leave a vulgar, hate-filled message at 46 years old isn’t strength, it’s immaturity and a sick obsession. If your political loyalty has you defending racism by practicing racism, you are the problem. Triggered, fragile, and proving the point.

Another triggered Trump supporting “Christian“ white man calling with insults and threats. Jeff Beaupain (facebook.com/p/Jeff-Beaupai…) from Dallas, Texas, a grown man pushing 60, called my church threatening to “beat the sh*t” out of me because I called Trump racist. Let that sink in. Old enough to be a grandfather. Old enough to know better. Old enough to understand the Constitution he claims to love. Yet emotionally fragile enough to call a church and threaten physical violence over a social media post. This is white fragility on full display. You have every right to disagree with me. You have every right to post your opinion on your page. You do NOT have the right to threaten violence because you can’t control what I say on mine. If your politics make you this unhinged, the problem isn’t my critique, it’s your insecurity. And for the record, Jeff: intimidation doesn’t work over here.

This is one of the many racist threats I’ve received through voicemail in less than 24 hours after pushing back against Trump’s State of the Union rhetoric and the attempt to canonize Charlie Kirk as some kind of Christian hero. A so-called Christian and defender of Trump and Kirk called my church and said: “Watch your f****ing back… n*****.” This is the fruit. They tell us Charlie Kirk represents faith. They say he’s a man of God. They claim they’re defending Christianity. Yet when challenged, they reach for racial slurs and threats. You cannot preach Christ and practice racism. You cannot shout “man of God” while speaking the language of white supremacy. You cannot defend “Christian virtue” while threatening Black clergy. The hypocrisy is staggering. But don’t get it twisted: I will not be intimidated. I will not be silenced. And I will continue to call out the idolatry of political figures masquerading as Christian discipleship. If this is what your movement produces, don’t lecture anyone about faith.

This nut said he ended 8 wars 🤦🏾‍♂️ He lies about the lies that he lies about! #StateOfTheUnion

He’s loosing his 💩 over people that won’t stand and clap for him as he exploits people to bolster his lies #StateOfTheUnion