Talladega College is a historically-black college in Alabama, founded by slaves. Now, the college’s marching band has not only agreed to play Trump’s Inauguration, they’ve raised $312,000 (and counting) to make it happen.
Update (12 noon PT Friday): The band has now crossed the $320,000 mark, and counting (just two hours after we published this piece).
Not one marching band from Washington, DC agreed to play Trump’s upcoming Inauguration. Those bands, which hail from inner-city high schools and the largely-black Howard University, played both of Obama’s Inaugural parades.
Talledega College’s marching band has taken an entirely different approach. The historically-black band not only agreed to play Trump’s parade, they’ve raised more than $300,000 to do it. In fact, their GoFundMe page has gone absolutely wild over the past 24 hours.
How wild? Less than 24 hours ago, DMN reported that the band was $10,000 below their funding goal. That story was then picked up by Fox News.
Early this morning, the band is more than 500% over their mark. Actually, in the time it took to write a few paragraphs, the band has already added another $3,000 or so.
All of which means ‘The Great Tornado’ from Talladega is not only packing their bags, they’re buying new instrument and uniforms for the event.
Hey, might as well upgrade the bus while they’re at it. It’s a long ride from Alabama!
+ A Complete List Of All Donald Trump Inauguration Performers (Updated)
Thanks, Fox News.
Looks like Fox News is playing rainmaker for marching bands struggling to get to the event. Just recently, the network profiled Palmetto High School, which was struggling to scrape together funds to play the parade. After that profile, the group easily soared by their six-figure funding requirements.
And they say network television news is dead.
Now, the same effect is happening for Talladega. But this one is about 1,000 times more controversial: a large group of alums are adamantly opposed to the decision, citing Trump’s policies and rhetoric of hate. In fact, the funding largely came from a swarm of white supporters, many of whom are arguing vociferously with protesting alums.
But wait: maybe this is the right decision.
DC bands refused to attend. Superstar performers like Andrea Bocelli, Elton John, Celine Dion, Garth Brooks, and Charlotte Church refused to perform.
But is that the right choice?
All of those artists either flatly disagreed with Trump, or felt that an Inaugural performance would be toxic to their careers. Fair enough, but is Talladega taking the high road? And, ensuring better treatment during the upcoming Trump years?
That’s a question that is now surfacing, both for Hollywood and the music industry. For the most part, most film and music stars are refusing to participate, though this is a group with serious legislative and policy concerns ahead. Will they be promptly ignored, based on their refusals and anti-Trump rhetoric?
Looking at the music industry, a portfolio of copyright-related issues could be promptly dismissed. But hey, maybe the Talladega ‘Great Tornado’ will help appropriations for colleges and music programs.
It’s a thought.
More as this develops!
Marching bands are an abomination.
That’s a surprising reaction to me… Nice work!
The Untold Story: How Donald Trump Really Won?
75 percent of America’s high-poverty neighborhoods in 1970 still classified that way four decades later. Racial and class inequality is very much alive, “progressive politics” apartheid. Blacks have voted Democratic for almost 50 years are now being driven from their neighborhoods that have been their home for generations. We gave the Democratic Party our votes and they “took us for granted” leaving us living with social tension, unrest, and the worst GUN VIOLENCE AND VIOLENT CRIME . . . A diminished hope and no opportunities while the Democratic Party’s upscale hipster real estate speculators prosper.
President-Elect Donald Trump wants to enable states with dedicated grants and implementation standards related to diversity, inclusion, and targeted hiring the resources necessary to spur investment in underserved black neighborhoods. Stopping gun violence, revitalizing education, creating jobs, replacing substandard housing, and strengthening black families is a mandate we secured for him.
That is, Mr. Trump owes his victory to “predominately black Democratic strongholds” who were convinced to give him more votes than the previous Republican candidates. African Americans convinced hundreds of thousands blacks to “boycott” the vote and/or voting “straight” Democrat. All across America the black vote “boycott” masterminded by Todd Elliott Koger effectuated an insurmountable obstruction for Hillary Clinton and the Democrats. There is correspondence to the Trump campaign that outlined “Koger’s Plan.” There was a “Thank You for the suggestion” reply. And, President-Elect Donald Trump’s verbatim use of Mr. Koger’s exact same words during “online videos” and speeches that followed in Michigan, Milwaukee (Wisconsin) and Pennsylvania.
Todd Elliott Koger’s writings at one point specifically advised that the “Koger Plan” to target the black vote will changed the destructive conversation and slip in the polls that the “verbal fight” with Khizr Khan, a slain U.S. soldier’s father had caused in late August 2016.
When the Trump campaign started to collapse in October 2016, and everyone started to run away . . . Mr. Koger suggested the “need for a new writing” to change the conversation again. He suggested that the campaign needed to move away from the “hot mic incident.” Todd Elliott Koger’s correspondence suggested a “Treaty with Black America.” There’s another “thank you” from the campaign. And, Mr. Trump almost immediately announced a “Contract with the American Voter” and a “New Deal for Black America.”
Maybe this is just a remarkable concurrence of events. Maybe Mr. Koger’s packaging of Mr. Trump’s visual optics and his efforts to communicate implementation of the ” Koger Plan” had no apparent connection. Maybe it was just “serendipity” in North and West Philadelphia (Eastern Pennsylvania) and Penn Hills, Allegheny County (Western Pennsylvania) where turnout fell 10 percent in the majority-black wards. Happenstance in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (District 15), where turnout was down 19.5 percent. Apparent “fluke” in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan, where 75,000 “Motown Voters” decided to stay home. One thing for sure, Todd Elliott Koger’s correspondence kept reiterating that “Mr. Trump’s only path to victory” was the “black vote.” Cities like Boston, Massachusetts’ “predominately black” wards had their greatest decline in voter turnout this century. And, just 50,000 votes in three states, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin (the focus of “Koger’s Plan”) decided the election.
The “PLAN” was conceived: Convince hundreds of thousands blacks to “boycott” the vote and/or voting “straight” Democrat.
The “STRATEGY” was organized: Find every conceivable email address, mailing lists, newsgroup, on-line discussion, black organization, local activists, and the like, and send them an endless repetition of talking points.
Mr. Koger’s “MESSAGE”: 50 Years of failed Democratic inner cities.
There is available representative correspondence (sent to the Trump campaign and others) that demonstrates well how the “electoral college victory” was propelled. That is, Todd Elliott Koger’s suggested “THEMES” (We Must Come Together) and persuasive point-helping support is now documented with dates to prove the actual source of things (something no other person has been able to articulate about the black vote in 2016).
The National Diversity Coalition for Trump did finally send a “Thank You.” But interestingly, Todd Elliott Koger and his wife don’t even have tickets for the Trump inauguration, its events, nor any job offers . . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dieNd5h_qpw