in LGBTQ, Politics, WTF

Yes, Trump Is Selling Pride T-Shirts—Because Hypocrisy

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Donald J Trump, the President of the United States of America, is described in many ways by his critics.

People say:

He is a liar. He is a grifter. He is a bully.

However, one of the most common words to describe the man and his presidency, would have to be “hypocrite.” Websites have sprung up just to track times Trump does something he railed against on Twitter in the past.

And now, in a display of blatant capitalism and a rather impressive lack of self-awareness, the President’s online shop sells “LGBTQ for TRUMP” shirts.

This is not a joke.

The shirts feature a rainbow background that looks like it was painted in watercolor, with the words in white over it. It would appear that it retails for $30 but act fast and you can get a $6 discount.

The fact he sells this is as unsurprising as it is infuriating for LGBTQ equality advocates.

While Trump made promises on the campaign trail to be the most LGBTQ positive candidate, many didn’t take him seriously. And after he took office, they were proven right.

Trump has a track record of hurting the rights of LGBTQ people whenever he can. He enacted a ban of transgender people being able to serve in the military, a move which caused his generals concern.

This month, he rolled back legal provisions in the Affordable Care Act that protected people based on gender identity and whether or not they’ve received an abortion in the name of religious rights. The Daily Beast even had an exposé on the change in enforcement of a policy that is making it harder for the children of LGBTQ couples to become citizens.

And most recently HUD announced they plan endorse housing discrimination against transgender people. Although to be fair, the shirt says LGBTQ for Trump, not Trump for LGBTQ.

Maybe it’s for only LGBTQ people who think access to healthcare, housing and equality of treatment is overrated?

Selling these shirts, you would think it’d be easy to forget the numerous insults the administration has given to an entire subset of American citizens, right?

Admittedly, it was easy to forget about this shirt. It was pointed out by a reporter back in October, and according to the Internet Archive, has been around since at least May of last year.

If he genuinely has been selling it since May 2018, then it’s a little impressive that he has the guts to still sell this shirt, especially right before Pride Month. Although unsurprisingly, Trump has yet to declare June as Pride Month even once during his presidency.

This probably goes without saying, but do not buy this shirt.

Donald Trump’s history with the LGBTQ community is obviously a one-way street. He’ll say he’s a friend, get some people to vote for him, and then remove all references to LGBTQ equality from the White House website.

This shirt is the perfect summation of that exchange.

It’s lip service. It’s a baseless lie.

And everyone who examines the Trjmp administration’s record on LGBTQ equality can see how blatantly dishonest it truly is.

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Written by Ben Acosta

Ben Acosta is an Arizona-based fiction author and freelance writer. In his free time, he critiques media and acts in local stage productions.