As Donald Trump sits in the White House, violent racism remains alive and well in the United States. At a Black Lives Matter protest this past Monday in a town called Fallon, Nevada — which is just over an hour away from the state capitol of Carson City — two men showed up wearing KKK hoods and waving Trump flags. The association between Trumpisn and support for violent racism like that which the KKK pushes has been established before, but the recent Nevada debacle is a poignant reminder of just what has fueled Trump’s rise to power. It’s racism — Trump peddles brazenly racist policies and earns the support of many brazen racists.
At the Nevada protest, a police officer spoke to the men in the KKK hoods, and they eventually went on their way, with no immediately apparent lasting consequences for their actions. Notably, two groups of protesters were on the scene at time that the Trump-supporting KKK adherents showed up, and they apparently united to condemn the racism. Those two groups included the main Black Lives Matter activists and some people who’d shown up in support of the “All Lives Matter” cause.
Newsweek reports:
‘Video has emerged showing the moment protesters from both sides came together to jeer and chant against the men who showed up at the demonstration in Fallon on Monday. The clip shows one officer arriving to talk to the men in white hoods while at least one protester chants: “No Trump, No KKK, no racist, fascist USA.”‘
Check out video of the incident below. These are the kinds of people who Donald Trump openly empowers to come out of the woodwork.
Right after we concluded our peaceful protest. pic.twitter.com/L1gb7oynJZ
— 𝔅𝔦𝔤 𝔎𝔞𝔥𝔲𝔫𝔞 (@MayMayZeller) June 9, 2020
Separately, the demonstration had previously swung the other direction, with protesters from each side coming together for apparent community and education. Max Ryan, who was on the “All Lives Matter” side, explained to local media that what could have been a more tense interaction between his side and the Black Lives Matter (BLM) protesters stayed more peaceful thanks in part to the compassionate reaching out of the BLM demonstrators.
He said to local media outlet KTVM:
‘What ended up transpiring, I don’t think either one of us saw happening. The parties came across each other’s line. And they said they come in peace. So I said if you come in peace, then give me a hug. And the next thing I know we were having a civilized conversation, educating each other. It’s kind of amazing what one hug can do sometimes.’
Black Lives Matter as a movement and protest slogan does not contradict “All Lives Matter.” Black lives are the ones that are and have been under attack in the U.S. for some time. Black Americans need focused support.
Meanwhile, Trump has continued to peddle his rabid racism at a sharp pace. His response to recent nationwide protests against police brutality has been emblematic of his overall behavior. Although when heavily armed, white demonstrators stormed the Michigan state capitol in protest of that state’s lockdown orders, Trump called them “very good people,” he’s repeatedly denounced supposed “thugs” when discussing the majority peaceful Black Lives Matter demonstrators across the U.S.
