Rev. Shaji Karackal
New York: Nicki Minaj known as the “Queen of Rap Music”, wholeheartedly welcome President Trump’s remarks over Nigerian Christian genocide and persecution of Christians all over the world.
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
“The United States cannot stand by while such atrocities are happening in Nigeria, and numerous other countries. We stand ready, willing, and able to save our great Christian population around the world!”
Minaj is open about her Christian faith and said the president’s statement made her “feel a deep sense of gratitude.”
“Reading this made me feel a deep sense of gratitude. We live in a country where we can freely worship God. No group should ever be persecuted for practicing their religion. We don’t have to share the same beliefs in order for us to respect each other,” Minaj wrote.
“Numerous countries all around the world are being affected by this horror [and] it’s dangerous to pretend we don’t notice. Thank you to the president [and] his team for taking this seriously. God bless every persecuted Christian. Let’s remember to lift them up in prayer.”
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz thanked Minaj for “using your platform to speak out in defense of the Christians being persecuted in Nigeria.”
“We cannot allow this to continue,” Waltz added. “Every brother and sister of Christ must band together and say, ‘Enough!'”
The situation for Christians in Nigeria has become dire as entire villages have been burned to the ground, worshippers have been murdered at Sunday services and thousands have been displaced by Islamist groups sweeping through the country.
“Even being conservative, it’s probably 4,000 to 8,000 Christians killed annually,” Mark Walker, Trump’s ambassador-designate for International Religious Freedom, told Fox News Digital. “This has been going on for years — from ISWAP to Islamist Fulani ethnic militias — and the Nigerian government has to be much more proactive.”
Trump said he has directed Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., and members of the House Appropriations Committee to investigate the situation and report their findings to him.
The president also said he would designate Nigeria a “country of particular concern” (CPC). According to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), in countries with that designation, the government has “engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom,” which is defined as “systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.” This comes from the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act.
Nicki Minaj, born Onika Tanya Maraj on December 8, 1982, in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, is a Trinidadian-born American rapper, singer, songwriter, actress widely regarded as the one of the most influential artists in hip-hop history. She has sold over 100 million records worldwide, making her the best-selling female rapper of all time. Minaj has reshaped female rap since the 2010s, inspiring a new generation with her unapologetic style and business acumen.
Minaj grew up in a challenging environment marked by her father’s addiction to crack cocaine and domestic abuse toward her mother, Carol Maraj, an Afro-Trinidadian gospel singer. The family immigrated to Queens, New York, when Minaj was five, where she attended Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, focusing on acting. She held odd jobs, including waitressing at Red Lobster, before pursuing music. In 2024, she revealed she holds Trinidadian citizenship and a U.S. green card but is not a naturalized citizen. Tragically, her father, Robert Maraj, died in a 2021 hit-and-run.
Minaj holds Guinness World Records for most U.S. #1s by a female rapper on the Hot Rap Songs chart (8) and most Hot 100 entries by a woman (100+). She’s won 9 American Music Awards, 11 BET Awards (record for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist), 8 MTV VMAs (including the 2022 Video Vanguard), and a Brit Award. With 12 Grammy nominations (no wins yet), she’s been named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People (2016) and ranked #10 on Billboard’s Greatest Rappers list (2023). She’s the most-followed female rapper on Spotify (34.1M) and YouTube (27.7M subscribers).
On November 1, Minaj publicly thanked President Donald Trump for addressing Christian persecution in Nigeria by Boko Haram, posting: “Thank you to The President & his team for taking this seriously. God bless every persecuted Christian.” She emphasized religious tolerance, replying to a fan: “Exactly & there are ‘extremists’ in every religion.
