Calls inner cities “more dangerous than war zones” and asks Black voters “what the hell do you have to lose”

At an August 22, 2016 rally in Akron, Ohio, Trump pitched himself to African American voters by painting “inner cities” as places “more dangerous than war zones,” claiming that crime was at levels “nobody’s seen,” that people were “living in hell,” and that under Democratic leaders they had “nothing to lose.” Guardian, Washington Post, NPR/KNAU, Newser, and other outlets quote him telling Black voters “What the hell do you have to lose?” while promising that under him they could “walk down the street without getting shot,” even though FBI statistics showed violent crime had fallen dramatically from the peaks he invoked. By pairing lurid, misleading crime claims with a contemptuous appeal to Black communities, he fused racist stereotypes with law‑and‑order fearmongering rather than offering concrete policy.

"You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs. What the hell do you have to lose?" — August 22, 2016 campaign rally in Akron, Ohio, where Trump told a largely white crowd he was speaking to African American voters, described inner cities as more dangerous than war zones, and framed their situation as having “nothing to lose” by backing him.