OPINION: Are we in a happy African American Heritage Month?

Happy African American Heritage Month.

Or not.

Granted, this has never been a major celebration in Idaho since less than 1% of the state’s population is African American. The number is so tiny, only Hawaiian-Pacific Islanders are a smaller population.

But since 1976, February has marked a national celebration of cultures from Africa and the Caribbean, and the important contributions made by Black citizens.

However, this year the national celebration was muted ahead of time when American Airlines flight 5342 collided with an Army Blackhawk helicopter on Jan. 29 and President Donald Trump said the cause of the crash was DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion). Trump made the pronouncement without any justification or facts.

There was no factoring in the FAA was without a leader or the severe shortage of air traffic controllers even before the Trump-mandated federal hiring freeze or offered employee buyout.

As a candidate, Trump asked then-Vice President Kamala Harris to define DEI. “What is it?” he asked. Now, still undefined by the administration, it has become the boogeyman, a nebulous object to be feared and eliminated.

As a result, it has made people of color or other differences, such as disabilities or being female, people to be feared, to truly become “other” in society.

For many people, these early revelations bring a fear that their rights may be erased in the next four years. Specifically, people are afraid the Trump administration may try to “adjust” or eliminate the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968 and the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, among others.

But the greatest fear is that the administration may try to dismantle the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. This is the amendment which provides equal protection under the law and citizenship rights to all people.

Specifically, the amendment clearly says that no state “shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

Already, there are reports of American citizens being detained under the sweeping deportation orders issued by Trump on his first day in office. As expected by some tribes, Indigenous people are not being distinguished from Mexicans or South Americans by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The federal government has not confirmed this is happening.

However, on Jan. 23 the Navajo Tribal Council released a statement which reads in part, “Despite possessing Certificates of Indian Blood (CIBs) and state-issued IDs, several individuals have been detained or questioned by ICE agents who do not recognize these documents as valid proof of citizenship.” Other tribes have issued instructions to their citizens about dealing with ICE agents when approached.

Realistically, it is believable that a light-skinned African American or American citizens with biracial identity might likewise be mistaken as Hispanic/Latino and detained. By instilling such distrust of darker skinned people, it is also believable that the orders might eventually be expanded to include Asians (shades of the anti-Chinese immigration laws of the 1880s or the Japanese internment camps of World War II).

If the existing laws are reversed, many U.S. citizens can again find themselves without legal protections and subject to overt discrimination in jobs, health care, housing and other elements of life.

For generations, it was the African American citizens who led the movement for equality and all people of color benefited from their work. As a result, the whole of the United States has gained from the talents of people of color in science, medicine, technology, education, music, theatre, law, engineering and many other essentials of daily life.

Within the 14th Amendment, Congress is granted the power to enforce the law and protect the rights of all citizens. It is time U.S. representatives and senators look at the amendment and decide to stand up — or not — for the rights of all people they claim to represent.

Tallent was a journalism faculty member at the University of Idaho for 13 years before her retirement in 2019. She is of Cherokee descent and is a member of both the Indigenous Journalists Association and the Society of Professional Journalists. She also writes for FaVS (Faith and Values) News.