Members of the Mississippi Valley State University Band perform during the game between the Memphis Grizzlies and the Cleveland Cavaliers at FedExForum on February 1, 2024, in Memphis, Tennessee. | Source: Justin Ford / Getty
An online crowdfunding effort to help pay for an HBCU marching band to perform during Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration festivities next month has been steadily attracting donors amid sharp criticism for the historically Black university seeking a means to attend the event.
Mississippi Valley State University (MVSU) has been getting closer to its fundraising goals to pay for its marching band’s trip to Washington, D.C. As of Tuesday morning, according to an account on the GoFundMe website, MVSU needs about $30,000 to reach its goal of $120,000. However, that is still a fraction of the goal of $350,000 that MVSU set via a Facebook post, possibly reflecting the growing outrage that the HBCU would even consider helping to celebrate a man who has proposed policies that would jeopardize historically Black colleges and universities.
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Mississippi Valley State wrote in a Facebook post on Thursday:
The MVSU ‘Mean Green Marching Machine’ is headed to Washington, D.C., for the 60th Presidential Inauguration Parade! This invitation is a testament to our students’ excellence and dedication. Help us raise $350,000 to make this once-in-a-lifetime experience possible for all our students!
The associated GoFundMe page said MVSU would also use any funds raised “to acquire instruments, uniforms, provide scholarships, and get other essential resources for its continued development,” including “making improvements to the band hall to facilitate band practice.”
MVSU President Dr. Jerryl Briggs said in a separate statement that the inauguration parade would be “an opportunity to showcase our legacy, celebrate our culture, and invest in the future leaders of our community. This participation allows students to engage in the peaceful transition of power and gain global exposure while celebrating the university’s 75th anniversary.”
But Bishop Talbert Swan, the senior pastor at the Spring of Hope Church in Massachusetts who has been regularly outspoken on social media about Black culture, has repeatedly said that performing at Trump’s inauguration parade was at odds with MVSU’s distinguished history that Briggs referenced. The fact that MSVU would be performing in celebration of Trump — who cut HBCU funding by billions — on the same day the nation observes the annual Martin Luther King federal holiday makes it a particularly “disgraceful betrayal of that legacy,” Talbert also said Saturday in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“Trump and his administration have worked tirelessly to erase Black history from classrooms, directly opposing the very fight MVSU students took on in 1964 when they boycotted for courses in Black history and access to works by Black authors,” Talbert wrote before adding: “It is shameful for the university’s leadership to celebrate this as a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ instead of recognizing it as an affront to the cultural and historical values of an HBCU. Rather than aligning with a president who has proven his racism through words and policies that harm Black communities, MVSU should prioritize efforts like renaming campus buildings that honor white supremacists such as Walter Sillers, Jr., Fielding Wright, and J.H. White. This decision not only insults the memory of Dr. King but undermines the very mission of HBCUs to uplift and empower Black excellence.”
Talbert followed that up with a lengthy open letter to Dr. Briggs that said in part:
To accept this invitation—particularly on Martin Luther King Jr. Day—comes across as both insulting and hurtful. Dr. King’s life and legacy were fueled by the pursuit of justice and equality. How does MVSU reconcile taking part in an inaugural celebration for a political leader who undermines the core of Dr. King’s dream and threatens to erase or punish the teaching of Black history, the very foundation of HBCUs?
While I respect that showcasing the band’s excellence can be an important moment for students, it should not eclipse the broader ramifications of aligning with an individual and administration that have historically demonstrated antipathy toward our progress. If anything, this moment calls for renewed commitment to MVSU’s moral compass—a spirit seen in the 1964 student protests for academic integrity and inclusive education.
While plenty of others on social media expressed similar criticisms as Bishop Swan, HBCU advocate Danny D. Glover reasoned that the vitriol directed at MVSU was selectively short-sighted since there is a history of historically Black college bands performing at the inaguration parades for other Republican presidents dating back to 1981.
Why it matters
Aside from Trump’s documented decades-long discrimination against Black people, both in the U.S. and around the world, he has frequently lied about the level of support that HBCUs received from his first presidential administration.
Trump has said he “saved” HBCUs — “They were going out, and I saved them” — and his administration made a permanent commitment of $255 million in annual funding for historically Black colleges. But that amount was significantly less than what Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden pledged, underscoring how much more Trump could have done and placing in question his commitment.
In particular, Trump’s “FY 2018 budget proposed cuts to critical federal student aid programs that disproportionately affect HBCU students—such as Pell Grants and Federal Work-Study programs,” Duvalier Malone explained last month in an op-ed for NewsOne. “Pell Grants are particularly crucial for low-income students attending HBCUs, and freezing their funding for over a decade has reduced their purchasing power. The proposed elimination of $733 million in Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOGs), which supplement Pell awards for the neediest students, would have negatively impacted more than 55,000 HBCU students. Additionally, while Trump maintained level funding for Title III grants at $245 million per year—well below what advocacy groups like UNCF had requested—he eliminated funding for other critical programs like the HBCU Endowment Challenge Grants. These grants were designed to help build long-term financial stability at historically underfunded schools.”
Notably, Trump has vowed to abolish the U.S. Department of Education, which distributes Pell Grants.
That is Trump’s true legacy on HBCUs and helps explain the outrage around MVSU’s intentions to participate in the inauguration parade celebrating the 47th presidency.
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