Cobb SCLC submitted the following statement on the racist video posted (then reportedly deleted) overnight on Truth Social by Donald Trump, depicting the Obamas as apes:

Statement on the Preservation of Human Dignity and the Rejection of Racial Dehumanization

AUSTELL, GA — The Cobb County Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) today issued a formal statement condemning the circulation of imagery that dehumanizes former First Lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama through racially charged caricature and comparison to primates.

“These portrayals are not satire,” said Dr. Sherman Wesley Scott, President and Chairman of the Cobb County SCLC. “They echo a painful and well-documented history of racist imagery historically used to degrade and dehumanize Black people in America and across the world.”

The organization emphasized that such imagery harms not only the individuals depicted but also undermines the moral conscience of the broader community and the ongoing pursuit of justice and reconciliation.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reminded the nation in 1963, “The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people.” The Cobb County SCLC affirmed that this moment requires moral clarity and principled leadership rather than silence.

Founded on the belief that every human being bears inherent worth and dignity, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference continues its historic mission of confronting racism, injustice, and all forms of dehumanization. The organization stated that while freedom of expression is a cherished constitutional right, dehumanization has never been a moral virtue.

“Content that reduces any individual or group to less than human corrodes public discourse and weakens the very fabric of a diverse democracy,” the statement read. “Our responsibility as leaders is not to inflame division, but to elevate dialogue and model respect.”

The Cobb County SCLC is calling upon community leaders, faith leaders, media voices, and citizens to reject rhetoric and imagery that degrade and instead promote communication that reflects dignity, truth, justice, and mutual respect.

The organization reaffirmed its commitment to advocating for a community and nation where disagreement never requires dehumanization and where the image of God in every person is honored and protected.