President Donald Trump looks on as Forlesia Cook speaks to reporters during a Black History Month event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on Feb. 18, 2026. (Saul Loeb – AFP / Getty Images)
By Samantha Chang February 19, 2026 at 11:35am
A 70-year-old black grandmother whose grandson was killed in Washington, D.C., in 2017 thanked President Donald Trump for making her city safer with his tough-on-crime policies.
At a Black History event Wednesday in the White House, Forlesia Cook shredded race-hustling Democrats who smear Trump as “racist” for trying to eradicate crime.
“Thank God for this president,” Cook gushed. “I love him. I don’t want to hear nothing you got to say about that ‘racist’ stuff.”
“And don’t be looking at me on the news, hating on me because I’m standing up for somebody that deserves to be standing for.
“Get off the man’s back. Let him do his job! He’s doing the right thing. Back off him,” Cook continued. “Grandma said it.”
MUST-WATCH: D.C. resident Forlesia Cook, who lost her grandson to murder, thanks President Trump for his work to Make America Safe Again in an incredible speech at the White House Black History Month Reception. 👏🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/cgxn8QFMev
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 18, 2026
The audience in the East Room erupted into applause at Cook’s fiery defense of the president.
Earlier in her speech, Cook said she likes Trump because “he keeps it real, just like Grandma. I appreciate that, because I can trust him.”
She explained that “Democrats get mad at me” because she supports the president’s anti-crime agenda, including his move to send the National Guard to Washington.
She recounted how Democrats ignored her repeated pleas for help after her 22-year-old grandson, Marty William McMillan Jr., was shot to death six years ago.
“On April 23, 2017, her 22-year-old grandson left for a date with a woman he met online but he never came home,” the New York Post reported.
“McMillan’s remains were discovered four months later on the side of a highway in Maryland. He had been shot multiple times before his body was dumped. Police didn’t identify his body until January 2018.”
In 2024, McMillan killer, John Jabar McRae, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to 16 years in jail.
Forlesia Cook said it’s common sense that violent criminals be punished.
“If you take a life, you do life. Just that simple,” she reasoned. “If you do a harsh crime, you do harsh time. Just that simple.”
Cook thanked Trump for deploying the National Guard to D.C., saying this was something that should have been done years ago.
As a reminder, Washington devolved into a crime-infested cesspool following decades of Democrat control.
🚨 HOLY SMOKES. Stunning new data finds Washington DC crime is PLUMMETING as much as 80% PERCENT thanks to President Trump
I voted for this!
Homicide: -80%
Robbery: -58%
Burglary: -28%
Motor vehicle theft: -57%
All crime: -26%THAT’S HUGE. Trump just proved it can be done. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/fNpX2a9VRd
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) February 2, 2026
It’s mind-boggling how Democrats and their media puppets constantly side with criminals over law-abiding Americans — whether it’s advocating on behalf of murderers and rapists, or promoting the welfare of foreign invaders at the expense of U.S. citizens.
As always, the political left weaponizes the overused “race card” to underpin their hollow criticisms.
But at this point, the public is desensitized to these impotent lines of attack — mainly because of the countless lies Democrats and their media minions have been caught pushing on race-related issues.
Why are all these suspects being categorized as “White”?
This will inevitably lead to unfair demonization of White Americans, inflating perceptions of “White crime”. pic.twitter.com/WKDzTYe10b
— Taya (@travelingflying) January 12, 2026
Here are some ”White” offenders.
I think they are marking people of other races incorrectly as White to inflate White crime statistics and to shape narratives, pumping up White numbers while burying the real patterns. Straight-up anti-White manipulation to demonize Whites. pic.twitter.com/h4qIgz6N95
— Taya (@travelingflying) January 14, 2026
For statistical purposes, the FBI classifies Hispanic suspects as ‘white’. For college admissions, they’re ‘people of color’ or ‘Hispanic’. Thanks to @TheByrdsHouse for clearing this up for me. #TrustStatistics pic.twitter.com/bl2bQAPF9s
— @amuse (@amuse) May 7, 2023
When you think about it, it’s racist for Democrats to say that enforcing the law is “racist,” because that implies that only non-whites commit crimes.
Is that what they’re saying? If so, they should say it — out loud — so everyone knows exactly what they think about the minorities they publicly lionize.
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