US Presidents With a History of Racism

The relationship between Black Americans and the presidency of the United States has historically been defined by a profound contradiction. While Black citizens have consistently participated in the democratic process to elect leaders they believe will protect their interests, there is a documented history of presidents employing racist rhetoric and implementing policies that targeted Black and minority populations.

Academic analysis suggests that racism is not merely incidental but has been woven into the history of the U.S. Presidency. This systemic issue manifests in various forms, ranging from private bigotry and the use of racial slurs to the official codification of segregation and the forced removal of indigenous peoples.

Racism in the Modern Presidency

In the modern era, recorded conversations and public statements have revealed the private prejudices of several presidents. On October 26, 1971, a recorded phone call between President Richard Nixon and then-California Governor Ronald Reagan captured Reagan using racial slurs to describe African representatives who were celebrating a United Nations vote regarding the Republic of China. Reagan referred to the delegates as monkeys and claimed they were still uncomfortable wearing shoes.

President Nixon also used derogatory language in separate recordings, referring to the same leaders as cannibals during a conversation with Secretary of State William P. Rogers. In other secret recordings involving his personal secretary, Rose Mary Woods, Nixon expressed a view that Black Americans would only strengthen the country in the very long term, suggesting that they have to be inbred to achieve this.

More recently, President Donald Trump faced criticism for his rhetoric toward non-white nations. At the start of 2018, Trump referred to African, Caribbean, and South American nations—specifically mentioning Haiti and El Salvador—as shithole countries. According to Time magazine, he questioned why the United States accepted immigrants from these regions instead of from Norway or Asia.

Mid-Century Contradictions and Civil Rights

Several mid-century presidents advanced civil rights legislation while privately maintaining racist views. President Lyndon B. Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act, yet reports indicate he frequently used racial slurs and the N-word when referring to the legislation and the people it was designed to protect.

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Similarly, President Harry S. Truman helped advance the civil rights movement, but letters he wrote as a young man revealed deep-seated prejudice. In these letters, Truman expressed a belief in racial separation, stating:

He (Truman’s uncle) does hate Chinese and Japs. So do I. It is a race prejudice, I guess. But I am strongly of the opinion that negros ought to be in Africa, yellow men in Asia and white men in Europe and America

Harry S. Truman

President Dwight Eisenhower also held private prejudices. While the Supreme Court was working on the desegregation of public schools through Brown v. Board of Education, Eisenhower complained about the prospect of white girls sitting next to big black bucks and used racial slurs in private conversations.

During World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 in February 1942. This order led to the forced evacuation and detention of more than 100,000 Japanese Americans in assembly centers, driven by heightened suspicions following the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Early 20th Century Segregation and Hierarchy

In 1913, President Woodrow Wilson implemented a mandate that segregated the federal workforce by race. This policy specifically targeted the Post Office and the Treasury Department, which employed the highest numbers of Black civil workers, thereby widening the income gap and removing Black employees from various levels of government where they had previously been able to work.

President Theodore Roosevelt was a proponent of racial hierarchies and the expansion of white territory. In his 1899 memoir The Rough Riders, Roosevelt claimed that Black soldiers were dependent on the guidance of white officers and would crumble under the pressure of war.

19th Century and Founding Era Policies

The early history of the presidency includes leaders who actively opposed the rights of minorities or participated in the slave trade. President Andrew Johnson campaigned against the 14th Amendment, which sought to provide citizenship and rights to freed slaves and all persons born in the United States. He delivered a series of speeches known as Swing Around the Circle to lobby against these measures.

President Andrew Jackson’s tenure was marked by the forced removal of Native Americans. In 1830, he signed the Indian Removal Act, which led to the forced migration of tribes, including the Cherokee, Creek, and Chickasaw, to the western part of the country. This forced march, known as the Trail of Tears, resulted in numerous deaths due to disease, hunger, and cold.

President James K. Polk maintained a lucrative slave plantation while in the White House. According to the White House Historical Association, Polk sold and separated children as young as 10 from their parents, while keeping these business dealings private to protect his political reputation.

The intellectual framework for these prejudices can be traced back to leaders like Thomas Jefferson. In his 1785 book Notes on the State of Virginia, Jefferson theorized that Black people were inferior to white people in both body and mind.

I advance it therefore as a suspicion only, that the blacks, whether originally a distinct race, or made distinct by time and circumstances, are inferior to the whites in the endowments both of body and mind.

Thomas Jefferson