9 Powerful Black Women Trump Has Targeted
Pressed Much??! 9 Powerful Black Women Trump Has Targeted—And How They All Fought Back
Donald Trump’s political journey has been marked not just by controversy but by a repeated pattern of antagonism toward powerful Black women. Whether through insults, legal pressure, or public belittling, he has gone after some of the most high-profile Black female leaders, journalists, and public servants. The latest was Florida congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who was recently charged with allegedly stealing $5m in federal disaster funds. According to the BBC, Cherfilus-McCormick is accused of laundering some Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funds into her 2021 election campaign. Prosecutors claim McCormick diverted funds from the FEMA contract to friends and relatives, who donated the money back to her campaign as personal contributions. McCormick called the charges baseless and vowed to fight for her innocence. “This is an unjust, baseless, sham indictment – and I am innocent,” she said in a statement.
Only time will tell if Cherfilus-McCormick will be found guilty of the charges brought against her, but it’s hard not to notice the pattern of Trump and his Allies coming for Black women. Here are nine other notable Black women who have faced the president’s wrath and how these queens bounced back effortlessly.
1. Kamala Harris
Trump has often attacked Vice President Kamala Harris’s identity and competence. During a National Association of Black Journalists event in 2024, he questioned her racial background, telling ABC News anchor and event moderator Rachel Scott:
“I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black.” He added, “So, I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?”
By questioning her background, the President tried to diminish her authenticity and undermine her voice. But Harris kept her cool when asked about the silly remark during a CNN interview last year.
“Same old tired playbook. Next question, please,” she replied.
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2. Letitia James
As New York State Attorney General, Letitia James has been a formidable legal opponent to Trump. Her office brought a civil fraud case against the Trump Organization, and later, under his administration, she was hit with a federal indictment for alleged mortgage fraud and making false statements. Critics have argued it’s part of a politically motivated retaliation campaign.
In October, James swiftly denied wrongdoing, calling the charges “baseless” and vowed to fight back against the allegations, according to NewsOne.
“This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system. He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General,” she said in a statement.
3. Lisa Cook
President Trump attempted to fire Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook on Aug. 25, accusing her of mortgage fraud, charges similar to those made against Letitia James. The allegations, first raised by Bill Pulte, Trump’s director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, led the Justice Department to open a criminal investigation. Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the Fed board, has not been charged and has insisted she did no wrong. She ultimately “successfully challenged Trump’s attempted termination in federal court,” according to The Grio.
No president in the Federal Reserve’s 112-year history has ever fired a sitting Fed governor until Trump attempted to remove Lisa Cook. A federal judge ruled the attempt illegal and reinstated her, and an appeals court upheld that decision. The Trump administration then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which allowed Cook to remain in her role while it prepares to hear oral arguments in January 2026.
4. Fani Willis
Fulton County (Georgia) District Attorney Fani Willis prosecuted Trump’s allies for election interference in 2023, accusing them of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results after Trump lost in Georgia. In response, the MAGA leader and a few of his supporters criticized her harshly. Trump mocked her name, calling the DA “fanny, like your ass,” during a rally in Ohio when talking about her name, according to Politico. She also faced racial and sexist tropes from the Republicans’ allies.
Fani Willis didn’t let the harsh remarks get her down.
“I live the experience of a Black woman who is attacked and oversexualized,” she said during a speech at a gathering of Black church clergy and congregants, according to Politico. “See, I’m so tired of hearing these idiots call my name as ‘fanny’ in a way to attempt to humiliate me because, like silly school boys, the name reminds them of a woman’s rear, of her behind.”
She added, “What I’m here to tell you is to not concern yourself with insults of me. I promise you, I don’t concern myself with them. I am too busy working 15-hour days trying to use every talent God gave me to fulfill my God-given purpose.”
Although Willis successfully brought national attention to the election interference case, she was ultimately dismissed from leading the prosecution in September, according to the Georgia Recorder. Willis remains disqualified from prosecuting President Donald Trump’s election interference case after the Georgia Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal over her removal.
The court’s 4–3 decision leaves in place the Georgia Court of Appeals’ December ruling, which disqualified Willis due to a “significant appearance of impropriety” arising from her romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, a special prosecutor she hired. As a result, the state’s highest court will not review the lower court’s determination, and Willis is barred from overseeing the case against Trump and the remaining co-defendants.
5. Maxine Waters
Longtime Congresswoman Maxine Waters, known for her strong criticism of Trump and for openly calling for the Republican to be impeached, has repeatedly been a target. Trump has disparaged her intelligence and competence, calling her a “low-IQ individual” in 2018, a common trope he uses to undermine outspoken Black female political leaders.
Waters said she wasn’t intimidated by Donald Trump’s comments during a 2018 interview with NBC News.
“There is no response; everybody knows who this bully is. This president has attacked more women… name-calling… This is what we expect of him,” she said. “I just wondered what took him so long. I’m not surprised at all. If he thinks he can stop me from talking about impeach 45, he’s got another thought coming. I am not intimidated by him.”
6. Jasmine Crockett
Trump has insulted Representative Jasmine Crockett, calling her and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez “low-IQ” people in October. Crockett recently questioned what might be driving Trump’s repeated attacks on her, saying his obsession with women of color reveals deeper insecurities.
“Listen, he’s never been known to be an Einstein,” Crockett said, during an interview on The Source with Kaitlan Collins. “This is not a guy who got in on merit when it came to going to college. This is someone who…probably wouldn’t have gotten into anybody’s institution – unlike me. So, I am not worried about that.”
She continued, “And I wish people would look at the fact that you have a president of the United States who consistently is obsessing over two women of color that are members of the House. You are the president. You have a lot more power than we do.”
She added, “But obviously, you consistently feel threatened. And that is why we have seen the attacks on Black women in general from this administration. I don’t know what Black woman hurt him in his past, honey, but it is really taking him through it.”
7. Yamiche Alcindor
As a prominent journalist covering Trump, Yamiche Alcindor has repeatedly faced his public derision. In 2020, the president told her to “be nice” and “don’t be threatening” after she began to ask a question about his response to the coronavirus in certain states. He insulted her again in September of this year, calling her “second-rate” during a press encounter, according to the New York Post.
“Are you trying to go to war with Chicago?” Alcindor asked Trump in September, attempting to gain clarity on a post he shared to Truth Social in which he threatened to send the Department of War to Chicago. Trump didn’t like the question and fired back immediately.
“Listen. Be quiet. Listen. You don’t listen. You never listen. That’s why you’re second-rate,” said Trump, according to The New York Post. “We’re not going to war, we’re gonna clean up our cities. We’re gonna clean them up, so they don’t kill five people every weekend. That’s not war, that’s common sense.”
For many, his tone toward her was emblematic of his broader hostility to Black women who challenge or question him, but Alcindor has made it clear by her actions that she is never going to back down against Trump to ask the hard questions for the American people.
8. LaMonica McIver
U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver, D-N.J., was indicted by the Trump administration on June 10 following an encounter with federal agents outside a Newark ICE facility, where she was participating in a congressional oversight visit, according to The Grio.
The 39-year-old freshman lawmaker now faces up to 17 years in prison over a May confrontation involving her, two other members of Congress, and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. The situation grew tense when McIver attempted to shield Baraka from being arrested for trespassing. Although charges against the mayor were later dismissed, the judge sharply criticized U.S. Attorney Alina Habba for what he called a “hasty” and “embarrassing” prosecution.
McIver has since pleaded not guilty to assaulting, resisting, impeding, and interfering with federal officials, the Associated Press noted.
“The facts are on my side…I have no doubt that I will be victorious,” McIver told The Grio after leaving a New Jersey courthouse where she was arraigned on a three-count indictment accusing her of “forcibly impeding and interfering with federal officers.”
She believes the charges reflect something deeper. “Me being the one person picked out to be charged, definitely speaks to me being a young Black woman, and basically speaking up and speaking out about what they were doing and how they treated us,” she added, describing the prosecution as an “intimidation tactic” designed to “humiliate” her.
In August, her legal team moved to dismiss the case, arguing that the Trump Justice Department was engaging in selective and vindictive prosecution. They also contend that McIver cannot be criminally charged for actions taken in the course of her official duties.
9. April Ryan
April Ryan has fearlessly defended herself in her clashes with Donald Trump. Throughout her time covering his administration, she consistently pressed him on issues affecting Black Americans.
Tensions often escalated during press briefings. At one point, Trump told her to “sit down” when she attempted to ask a question, and in another exchange, he labeled her “nasty,” a “loser,” and said she “doesn’t know what the hell she is doing.” Ryan later responded on air, standing firmly by her reporting and rejecting Trump’s insults.
When asked “Do you think he has a problem with women of color?” by The Real co-host Loni Love during a 2018 interview, Ryan replied, according to The Wrap, “The president is an equal opportunity offender, but when it comes to women of color, it gets very personal,” she said.
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