I love seeing anti-Trump protests. Like many other Black folks, I won’t be joining them.

The chaos of the Trump administration has roiled financial markets, upended the social order, and awakened the spirit of protest among white progressives.

It was gratifying to watch my white brethren take to America’s streets on April 5 for what they called “Hands Off!” protests. After enduring weeks of Donald Trump’s constitutionally questionable executive orders, I was thrilled to see white progressives awaken from the comfort of their political slumber. But like many in the Black community, I did not join their protests, and I have no plans to do so in the future.

That’s because African Americans have done more than our share to address the dysfunction of right-wing politics in America.

We’ve sounded the alarm on the racism. We’ve cast our votes against bigotry.

We’ve given our very lives to uphold American democracy. Now it’s up to white folks to fix this mess.

That won’t be easy, because the chaos is ongoing, and it shows no signs of slowing down. Even as protesters were marching, Trump was imposing tariffs on imported goods produced by allies and adversaries alike. The tariffs, which were higher than many experts expected, tanked the stock market and stoked worldwide fears of a recession as China announced reciprocal tariffs.

At first, Trump was undeterred. In fact, he bragged about it, telling attendees at a National Republican Congressional Committee fundraising dinner, “These countries are calling us up, kissing my ass” to negotiate tariff deals. He insisted he knew what he was doing, and that no one could negotiate like him. He told anyone who would listen he planned to stay the course on tariffs.

However, by Wednesday afternoon, Trump had relented, putting a 90-day pause on most of the tariffs with the exclusion of China.

My question, after watching Trump upend the world economy with a series of ill-advised news conferences, is whether he will act with restraint going forward.

The answer, for me and anyone else who’s watched Trump’s thirst for attention, is a resounding no.

That’s why this is for white folks to handle. It’s clear the alarm about the Trump administration’s racial policies is not enough to cause most Americans to move.

White America has shown little concern about the Trump administration’s disturbing habit of using the diversity, equity, and inclusion label to erase non-European history, literature, and culture from government websites.

Nor has white America shown sufficient concern for the rights of legal immigrants in a country where free speech is increasingly under threat.

African Americans have done more than our share to address the dysfunction of right-wing politics in America.

However, in a society where capital is king, not even Trump can take the dollar off the throne. When white America’s money is at risk because of the president’s unpredictable economic policies, I expect my white brothers and sisters to stand up and fight back.

For Black Americans, our absence from demonstrations, rallies, and protests is not something we’re doing out of spite — it’s fairness: Trump is white America’s creation, after all, so it’s only fitting white Americans take the lead right now.

Trump is the manifestation of the white rage that took hold when a Black man captured the presidency.

He is the consequence of the white silence that has allowed him to escape accountability.

He is the salve for baseless white fears about demographic replacement and other unhinged conspiracy theories.

» READ MORE: Trump promised policies to make people of color miserable. Now his voters are feeling the pain, too. | Solomon Jones

But now that Trump can seemingly manipulate the world’s financial markets with a wave of his hand, he controls the economic fortunes of every American, regardless of our race, creed, or color.

In a country where our freedom is tied to our ability to climb the economic ladder, we all must do what we can to reclaim our fiscal independence.

Black voters did what was necessary during the presidential election, when 83% of us voted against Trump, and the misguided policies that he promised he’d implement.

By contrast, 56% of the white electorate supported Trump. In doing so, they proved they were willing to overlook the crimes that took place on Jan. 6, 2021.

They were willing to ignore Trump’s 34 felony convictions.

They were willing to forget the hundreds of thousands of Americans who died of COVID-19 on Trump’s watch.

Protesting Trump’s policies is a first step, but as African Americans have learned through centuries of hard-won experience, protest must be accompanied by concrete demands and meaningful action.

White progressives have begun this process by taking to the streets, but if they want Black Americans to join them, they must be willing to protest with their votes.

For now, in this moment of economic uncertainty that Trump has created, making things right will be up to those who created Trump.