Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/News
News

MAGA Republicans Are Seemingly Upset Black People Are Tap Dancing In the White House

Posted byBy Nicole Duncan-Smith | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

First Lady Jill Biden took to social media to debut her White House Christmas featuring a new spin on the classic “The Nutcracker.”

While she was excited to show inclusive holiday cheer, including people of all races and spotlighting Black dancers, some MAGA supporters were quick to play the Grinch and bash her effort, comparing her to the immediate past First Lady, Melania Trump.

Biden posted the 1:20 minute video on her X profile with the caption, “A bit of magic, wonder, and joy brought to you by the talented tappers of Dorrance Dance, performing their playful interpretation of The Nutcracker Suite. Enjoy.”

MAGA Republicans Are Seemingly Upset Black People Are Tap Dancing In the White House
Dancer Josette Wiggan of Dorrance Dance. (Photo: Instagram/josette_wiggan_taps)

The New York City dance company is dedicated to a mission of antiracism.

The clip opened with a Black woman, Josette Wiggan, dancing in a gold and black stylized tutu, tapping down a candy cane-lined hallway in the White House. At different markers, other dancers dressed in fanciful costumes jump out but never disrupt the Wiggan’s stride.

Once she reaches the end of the corridor, she bumps into another Black woman playing Claire, the main character of the traditional ballet. Claire delightfully brings the viewers and the dancers into the main room with the master Christmas tree. The tree is guarded by nutcrackers that all eventually break out into dance. Each routine takes the viewers on a tour of the White House’s holiday design — usually planned out by FLOTUS and her staff.

While Biden was quite pleased with the production, Trumpers were not — calling it crass and tacky. From their perspectives, Melania Trump’s decorations were a lot classier.

“The difference between the Trump and Biden White House is amazing. Melania Trump brought CLASS back to the White House!!” one X post read. Another person asked, “What does this White House video from Jill Biden have to do with the birth of our Lord and Savior?”

Almost immediately, people started to clap back, “Nothing. But then again, neither do decorated trees, tinsel, electric string lights, egg nog, wrapped gift exchange, mistletoe, wreaths, candy canes, reindeer, or Jimmy Stewart movies.”

Democrats on the platform were quick to poke fun at how agitated Trump supporters seemed.

Others just blasted the audacity of the critics, who appeared to be predominantly white, writing, “Black people built that house. They can dance wherever the hell they want.”

One person called the haters on their re-imagined history, reminding them of what the wife of the 45th U.S. president said on a hot mic about her Christmas duties.

In 2020, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a former friend of Mrs. Trump, through the book “Melania & Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship With the First Lady,” shared what Mrs. Trump really thinks about decorating the White House for Christmas.

Wolkoff had recorded Mrs. Trump in 2018 as saying, “I’m working … my a—  off on the Christmas stuff, that you know, who gives a f—k about the Christmas stuff and decorations? But I need to do it, right?”

“Okay,” the first lady says, “And then I do it, and I say that I’m working on Christmas and planning for Christmas, and they said, ‘Oh, what about the children that they were separated?’ Give me a f—king break. Were they saying anything when Obama did that? I cannot go– I was trying to get the kid reunited with the mom.”

As for Mrs. Biden, in her work to present Christmas at the White House, she enlisted help from a volunteer named “Beth,” a military spouse.

This year, according to the First Lady, the ornaments on the main tree are “created out of the handprints and painted family portraits of military-connected children.” In a video, Beth is seen teaching others how they can recreate the ornaments at home.

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top