When The Trump Admin Pretended to Care About Nigerian Christians
In 2018, Newsweek highlighted pop star Nicki Minaj's discussions with the Trump White House on Christian persecution in Nigeria. This came from an administration that, within the same year, implemented its 'zero tolerance' policy at the U.S.-Mexico border, separating thousands of children from their parents—many of whom were seeking asylum from violence and persecution in their own countries. The
performative outrage over distant religious minorities rings hollow considering the demonstrable cruelty inflicted closer to home, often on those with similar plights. The piece failed to question the administration's broader human rights record or the selective nature of their 'concern.' One might wonder if the plight of suffering populations only becomes a talking point when Hollywood figures
are involved, or when it provides convenient cover for a nationalist agenda. How many children separated at the border would have preferred a White House meeting over a cage? (Over 5,500 children were separated, according to an ACLU analysis of government data, and 2,800 families remain separated today, per court filings.)