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President Donald Trump once again crescendoed his racism from a dog whistle to a foghorn on Twitter to his 84 million followers.
Trump told those living their "Suburban Lifestyle Dream" that they would no longer be "bothered" by the presence of low-income housing in their neighborhoods.
The tweet was to announce Trump's revocation of the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule—an Obama-era policy designed to make suburban neighborhoods more accessible to low-income Americans, many of them people of color. The aim of the rule was to prevent housing discrimination.
Trump railed against the rule in his tweet.
...Your housing prices will go up based on the market, and crime will go down. I have rescinded the Obama-Biden AFFH Rule. Enjoy!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 29, 2020
The tweets came in the same month that Trump tweeted to "suburban housewives," urging them to read an article that threatened Democratic nominee Joe Biden would spoil the suburbs by allowing the rule to continue. The article insisted that the position wasn't racist, because the position against the rule was based on income, not race. The writer did not acknowledge that one's race often affects one's income.
People heard the not-so-subliminal message Trump was sending loud and clear.
Let’s be clear: the President is using racist fear-mongering to say he’s happy to dismantle civil rights in search… https://t.co/MZyvbdRu0C— Elizabeth Warren (@Elizabeth Warren) 1596048029.0
I’ve looked at this tweet so many times trying to think of what to say and I’m really at a loss besides this: This… https://t.co/IZztogkmuy— EB💫 (@EB💫) 1596126413.0
People say racism is no more. This is what we call redlining and yes, it’s a racist tactic that has been used for d… https://t.co/kQciBsH5rR— matt h. (@matt h.) 1596126347.0
Having affordable housing is detrimental to lowering crime rates, giving minorities equal opportunity to prosper i… https://t.co/X0XgHxg5ua— arleth🍒 (@arleth🍒) 1596126310.0
The first thing that came to my mind was “how racist can you get”! https://t.co/eQlQyneDNY— Bev (@Bev) 1596126111.0
Some elaborated on the consequences Trump striking down the rule would have.
Trump on his admin's rescission of the "Obama-Biden AFFH Rule." The rule was designed to help cities comply with th… https://t.co/ciuIbq3ZTp— Amanda Becker (@Amanda Becker) 1596040393.0
So, this is the AFFH, Affirmative Furthering Fair Housing Rule which has its roots in the Fair Housing Act (1968).… https://t.co/hJCyAKb5Ug— Reggie Aqui He/Him (@Reggie Aqui He/Him) 1596043899.0
The AFFH rule was inspired by the Civil Rights Movement, and we finalized it at HUD to fulfill the promise of fair… https://t.co/yZaWzeVp8V— Julián Castro (@Julián Castro) 1595527173.0
Trump himself has a record of housing discrimination.
Republican President Richard Nixon's Justice Department sued Donald Trump and his father Fred in 1973 for Fair Housing Act violations, which the Trump Organization eventually settled. This instance was part of a pattern of racial discrimination among Trump properties.