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Trump Hosts a Reception Honoring Black History Month, Feb. 20, 2025

February 20, 2025 · The White House · 0:23:36

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What happened

President Donald Trump hosted a reception honoring Black History Month at the White House on Feb. 20, 2025, carried on the White House channel, paying tribute, as he put it, to the generations of Black legends, champions, warriors, and patriots who helped drive the country forward. He was joined by golfer Tiger Woods, Masters winner Adam Scott, and PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, whom he thanked for their discussions.

The President honored Alice Johnson, who attended, recounting as he told it that she spent 22 years in prison with another 22 left for being on the wrong telephone line, and that his pardon of her was one of the best pardons. He also pointed to the National Garden of American Heroes statue park under the executive order he signed the previous month, saying final sites were being picked and that the garden would honor hundreds of great Americans, including countless Black American icons, as he described it.

Why it matters

The reception records the administration’s Black History Month observance with its criminal-justice thread (the Johnson pardon story the President retells as a signature case) and the heroes-garden project, stated from the East Room podium.

Sources: The White House, “President Trump Hosts a Reception Honoring Black History Month” (YouTube, 2025-02-20) - official description and broadcast transcript as aired.