Leadership Traits: The Role of Race and Religion in the 2024 Election in America.*
Leadership is a big deal in all human sociopolitical configurations. It matters to God and matters to man. The success or failure of an institution, a people group, or a nation rests on the quality of its leadership. It's the reason why periodic elections are held in modern civilized societies. For instance, elections in a democracy allow different leadership strata to give an account of their stewardship over time, and the electorate to affirm the good performance of leaders or have them replaced with people with better leadership potential.
A leadership attribute transcending culture and timeframe is character. Character stands as a cornerstone of trustworthy leadership. Underpinning character is integrity - aligning proper actions with proper values, even when the road is rough and difficult.
Both God and humans recognize the importance and effectiveness of certain leadership traits.
President Abraham Lincoln, for instance, is often called “Honest Abe” for his unwavering commitment to truth and moral principles. While not perfect (no one is), Lincoln’s integrity guided his decisions and earned him respect from allies and adversaries, even in the face of a divided nation during the Civil War.
King David is described as a man after God’s own heart; In 1 Samuel 13: 14, David’s integrity was evident in his refusal to harm King Saul, a man seeking to kill David, even when he had the opportunity. (24; 1-7). He deferred to Saul, in honor of the LORD’s anointing upon him as king.
Other qualities that define great leadership from ancient to modern-day politics and corporate business are Competence, Vision, Charisma, Experience, Empathy, and Accountability.
Scripture and historical records are full of good and bad examples of leaders.
Competence and Vision
The skills of competence and vision necessary to guide the nation during the Great Depression and World War II were demonstrated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt toward a better future. In Genesis 41, Joseph showed competence and vision in managing Egypt’s resources in preparing for a coming famine. His foresight and administrative skills saved Egypt and surrounding nations from starvation.
Empathy and Accountability
Empathy and accountability are a set of vital qualities for outstanding leadership. An empathetic leader understands and addresses the needs of his people, fostering trust and loyalty. Accountability helps to ensure transparency and ethical governance. Nelson Mandela’s leadership in post-apartheid South Africa displayed both of these qualities. His empathy for all South Africans, including those who had oppressed him, and his commitment to accountability helped heal a deeply divided nation.
Granted that God has always chosen humans - individually and collectively, to fulfill His purposes on earth, such individuals, called to leadership positions within God’s chosen community, are endowed with appropriate leadership virtues and skills to do the job.
God led ancient Israel in the Old Testament through Moses and others under his leadership (Exodus 18: 12-27).
Today He leads the Church of the New Covenant through the ministry (Ephesians 4: 11-12). The Spirit spells out the required qualities for Co-workers with Christ in the Church. The qualities are humility, wisdom, discernment, and servanthood. We read in Philippians 2: 3, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” Micah 6: 8 adds, “He has shown you O man, what is good, and what does the LORD require of you, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God,”
These Scriptures prioritize the common good over personal gain.
II
In the second part of this article, we seek to address some of our Christian brothers and sisters in and out of the U.S. who are being fed with flagrant if deliberate disinformation about the candidacy of former President Donald Trump as the favored candidate of Christians in the United States.
We owe it a duty to expose the undercurrents of lies behind Trumpism and the danger it poses for immigrants and colored people in America, with implications for global peace and stability if Donald Trump returned to the White House. Christianity anywhere has nothing to gain under Trump. His worldview, past and present, is anti-Christianity. Let not our African Christian brothers and sisters be deceived, American evangelicalism has nothing to do with Jesus. It is a white supremacist political movement.
The MAGA wing of the Republican Party is using Trump. He uses every opportunity in his campaign rallies to pander to his MAGA base, saying what they want to hear. Trump has no plan for anyone apart from himself and the super-rich supporting him as their arrowhead.
With Kamala Harris in the race, he is in a meltdown mode, speaking like a wounded lion, and desperate to bring down the world if that’s what is required for him to seize power, hijack the presidency, and escape going to jail for his criminal convictions. In desperation, Trump has printed and is selling his bible in which the American Constitution is embedded.
Every true believer in Jesus should be appalled by this act of a man who has never read the Bible or have any shred of regard for Jesus.
While you may not take my word for it, I ask you to read this adaptation of Rod T. Faulkner’s article below or the full article on Medium:
“This is what is meant by “Make America Great Again.” it’s a clarion call for the return to a time of white supremacy operating unchecked.”
Make America Great Again (MAGA) is one dominant campaigning feature in the current U.S. election cycle. The MAGA phenomenon fronting for the far right white Christian nationalists under the cover of Christian Evangelicals, is a slogan to bolster their claims of patriotism and national pride.
The question waiting to be answered is when exactly was this Great American Age?
In other words, what specific epoch in the past, could every American citizen look back to as “the good old days”? Can someone give us an idea of what life was like in the particular “Great America” for all Americans?
Let’s together take a review:
It wasn’t in 1619 when enslaved Africans were first brought to the English colonies that became the United States, nor was it on July 4, 1776, when the Continental Congress approved The Declaration of Independence - a document authored by Thomas Jefferson, himself an enslaver.
The text of the Declaration of Independence, on the surface, promises hope for all:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that their Creator endows them with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Great! Great!! And Great!!!
But as it became truly evident, the phrase “All men are created equal,” did not include an enslaved African or a woman of any ethnicity.
So, 1776 was not the year when America was “great”
Other seminal times in history when America was not great, include the following:
American chattel slavery (1619 - 1865)
The Trail of Tears (1830 - 1840)
The Civil War (1861-1865)
Black code (1865-1866)
Jim Crow (1877-1950)
The internment of Japanese Americans (1942-1946)
Race massacres, riots, and destruction of Black communities (1863-1992)
Lynchings and other campaigns of domestic terror (1882-present)
Segregation (1865-1957)
The War on Drugs (1971-2010)
The School-To-Prison Pipeline (1972-Present)
Redlining (1930-2008)
Police Brutality (1830-Present)
In the twenty-first century, the MAGA crowd led by former President Donald Trump is crying for a return to which of these as when America was great?
Unless they can point to other historical epochs outside of the periods listed above, one can safely conclude that they are clamoring for a rewind of progress made over two centuries, toward modernity and peaceful co-existence of all Americans - going back to the days when white supremacy was not only the societal norm but the rule of law.
This, apparently, is the central aim of Project 2025 - a 900-page agenda for making the authority and power of white, cis-gendered, heterosexual, and so-called Christian men absolute on the assumption of Donald Trump in office as 47 President of the United States.
And for Black and Brown people?
It is apparent that the White Supremacists, including white conservative evangelicals, would place Black citizens back in chains if given the chance.
This is what “Make America Great Again” means. It’s a clarion call for a return to a time when white supremacy reigned unchecked.
It is a sentiment rooted in fear.
There’s a palpable fear that in another 20-30 years, white people will no longer be the majority in America. They are scared by the thought of what the future holds for those whose interests have always been prioritized in the fabric of American society since the country’s inception.
Unity in Diversity: The Plausible option to MAGA
The way forward for all well-meaning Americans regardless of race and color, is to unite and promote efforts at building trust and confidence of all citizens for peaceful co-existence, rallying behind a leadership that brings everyone to the table while living up to the American ideals. The manifest desperation of the MAGA party to pull down, rather than build up the American project is certainly not the way to go.
Though history has shown that those in power rarely share it willingly and peacefully with the oppressed, change is inevitable. It is wise and better to give room for peaceful change than to perpetuate the fear, anger, and denial that MAGA represents. The American Dream is being reconfigured to accommodate the up-and-coming diverse and energized generations working hard to make America truly great.
Such is the clear choice in the 2024 election.
*This article reflects the writings of two authors, Edward L. Winkfield, “What God Looks for in Leaders”, The Real Truth Magazine, and Medium Contributor, Rod T. Faulkner, “The Question MAGA Refuses To Answer.”
