Anti-Israel protests could hit Biden at Morehouse, but he could woo Blacks

News that President Joe Biden will speak at Morehouse College’s commencement sparked calls for a walkout by students and faculty over his support for Israel in its war against Hamas.

Faculty & Staff for Justice in Palestine-Georgia, a group of academic workers with chapters across the country, said in a social media post that the president’s visit to Morehouse on May 19 “will prompt significant protest among current students and faculty, subjecting them to discipline and, potentially, dangerous confrontations with the police.”

Campus protests, including some in Georgia, have grown since the Israel-Hamas war began in October.

The biggest demonstrations have taken place at Columbia University in New York City, where more than 100 students were arrested this month.

But Biden also has supporters at the historically Black college.

They include Morehouse President David A. Thomas, who touted Biden’s record over the past two years, saying his administration “has more than doubled Black household entrepreneurship, increased Black wealth by 60% since the pandemic, invested more than $7 billion in HBCUs and — most recently — forgiven over $140 billion in student loans.”

The visit gives Biden an opportunity to shore up his support among Black voters going into this year’s election.

In 2020, 95% of Black women and 87% of Black men voted for Biden, but recent polling suggests some weakening in his support from Black men.

While some polls show former President Donald Trump is gaining ground among Black voters, most show Biden retains an enormous lead among those voters.

Emory University political scientist Alan Abramowitz, who recently published an analysis on electoral trends, noted “surprisingly robust support” among Black voters for Trump in recent polls. But he said recent exit polling and turnout trends made him skeptical of surveys suggesting Republicans were on the verge of a big breakthrough with Black voters.

President Joe Biden