Stop allowing identity politics to divide us, says Stephen Davis, who grew up suspicious of white people but has learned that faith and respect bring people together

Paul Valencia
Clark County Today

Stephen Davis is a mountain of a man, a body builder and former body guard, showcasing his 308 pounds of muscle in every room he enters.

His message is way bigger than he is, though.

“This is the United States of America, not the Divided States of America. We need to come together and stop allowing something as ridiculous as identity politics to come between us. At the end of the day, we should identify as one thing, as children of God. That’s all. That’s it. That’s who we are,” Davis told a gathering Wednesday night in east Vancouver. “I’m so sick of the white this, or the black that. We are Americans and we are children of God.”

Davis, who described himself growing up as a racially bigoted person, became a changed man during the lead-up to the first Trump administration. Davis now works with Turning Point USA, traveling the country to visit with young people to teach American history, values, and faith. 

A 40-year-old African-American, he spoke Wednesday to a group of young students, their parents, and other guests at Firmly Planted Family Home School Resource Center. The event was sponsored by the Clark County chapter of Turning Point USA and the Clark County High School Activism Hub.

“It was super important to have Stephen here. We need to show the community that we can come together,” said Ruby Ruiz, the Southwest Washington chapter representative for Turning Point USA. “At Turning Point, we are nonpartisan. It is important to talk about the issues, talk about our values. Being able to come together and talk about our values amongst the youth and the community alike, that was a huge show. I’m really proud of this event.” 

Before his presentation, Davis told Clark County Today that he grew up in Southern California, with the black community telling him that white people were bad, that they would do anything to keep him from succeeding. 

In fact, it was during Donald Trump’s rise in politics that would change Davis’ perspective.

“I’m going to go after these Trump supporters, and I’m going to beat ‘em all down with the facts, and it’s going to be fantastic,” Davis recalled. “But first, I’ll have to do my research.”

That research was eye-opening to him.

Almost everything he was told from left-minded individuals was wrong. He had more in common with the people supporting Trump.

He saw how much the media can trick their audience with manipulation and half-truths. 

“You fall for it if you don’t do your own research,” Davis said. “Once I started doing my own research, ‘Hey, you’re taking things out of context.’ Or, ‘You’re not using the whole sentence.’ ‘I’m being lied to. What else are they lying to me about?’”

He became aware.

“From that moment on, it was doing a deep dive, searching my own heart, and getting back to the word of God,” Davis said. 

He also attended his first Trump rally.

“I had a blast. An absolute blast. The way I was welcomed, by people I was told hate me,” Davis recalled. 

Now, he travels the country, visiting college campuses and high school students. He talks about the founding fathers and their vision for America. And he begs young people to not take the bait from the race hustlers. 

“It’s been so rewarding, being able to get out there and give people a message of hope that I was never given,” Davis said. “It’s been so rewarding to talk to these kids, give them some hope, some positivity, some guidance I wish I had as a child.”

Davis said he wants to “steer” anyone off the course he was previously on when he grew up thinking the world was against him just because of the color of his skin.. 

“It’s a task I must take on, and I’m having a great time doing it,” he said.

So here he was on a Wednesday night in Vancouver, Washington, a place he had never heard of until recently. 

Before he went to the auditorium, he took about 20 minutes in a back room to talk with a few students. This massive, 300-pound man had a great back-and-forth with 12-year-old, 80-pound soccer player Jathan. Davis said he didn’t understand how soccer players could just run and run and run. Jathan snapped back, noting that all Davis did was lift weights. How fun could that be? The two then shared workout plans. Davis told Jathan he was impressed with Jathan’s mentality, saying he already had the mind of a champion.

Just a few minutes observing Davis, it is clear he was in his element. He was not talking down to anyone, but talking with young people, sharing stories, enjoying life. Together.

That was a big part of his message in the auditorium, too.

Davis has a big issue with DEI programs and Critical Race Theory. He noted a famous video of a conservative journalist asking white liberals if voter ID laws were racist. They said yes, because black people do not always know how to get IDs. That same journalist then asked black people, and they all had IDs. 

“It blows my mind the soft bigotry of low expectations that comes from the left,” Davis said. “When it comes to DEI, that’s exactly what it is, the soft bigotry of low expectations.”

He said CRT programs are destructive, too.

“You put on a racial lens, now you see racism in everything,” Davis said.

“When it comes to confirmation bias … if I’m looking at something through a certain lens, that’s all I will see.”

He noted big, national stories that go viral on social media, pitting races against each other. He said that is intentional. 

“Get black people riled up, Get white people riled up. This is what they do. It’s happened in so many other countries with class warfare. They are doing it to us, but it’s race,” Davis said. “Stop.”

He concluded his presentation with a message to all.

“We need to get away from tribalism,” Davis said. 

“We need to get away from this virus if we want to truly heal our country.”