A video that shows two African-American men beating a white man is circulating across conservative news sites that say the man was attacked for voting for Donald Trump. But police aren’t jumping to the same conclusion.
In the video, the two men — one in red pants and one in black pants — are seen punching and kicking the man, 50. At least one person is heard off-camera saying, “You voted Trump, you voted Trump.” Another says, “Don’t vote Trump.” Another man gets in what seems to be the victim’s car. Later, the man’s hand seems to be caught in the car window, and he is pulled down the street. The entire video is in broad daylight.
What’s unclear — despite the conclusion some have drawn — is whether the man is being beaten for being pro-Trump, or if that’s just something people are yelling in a gross attempt to be funny. There is no indication from the video that the man is actually a Trump supporter.
Police in Chicago, where the attack occurred, would not say if they were investigating the possibility that the man was beaten for backing Trump.
“On the 1100 block of South Kedzie at 12:48 p.m. officers responded to a call of a battery involving a 50-year-old male who reported being involved in a traffic-related altercation with three unknown males and two unknown females,” a Chicago police spokesman told TheWrap.
The victim was transported to a local hospital and is in good condition, but nobody is in custody and police are still investigating the situation.
Chicago police have asked that anyone with information on the assault contact Area North detectives at 312-744-8263.
Trump’s upset victory over Hillary Clinton has led to protests throughout the country.
Anti-Trump Protest Erupts on a Los Angeles Street Corner (Photos)
As protesters cheered and car horns honked incessantly in protest of President-elect Donald Trump, actress Laura Innes, known for "E.R.," joined roughly 45 other people on a Los Angeles street corner on Wednesday night. "I've known Hillary Clinton forever because I worked on her senate campaign," she told TheWrap. "Most of the people I know were literally crying all day. It does feel good to be out here."
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"Trump is truly a villain," Zach Shivers (far right) said, also noting that the silver lining to his upset win against Hillary Clinton is that "it will reignite the progressive movement."
The protest happened on the corner of National Blvd. and Venice Blvd., organized by MoveOn.org. It served as a proxy to a larger protest in downtown L.A. -- the biggest city in the largely blue state of California.
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"My feelings didn't come out until this afternoon when I realized what we were up against in our LGBTQ community," said Casey (left, who did not reveal his last name). He noted Trump's campaign promise to dismantle President Obama's signed Executive Order 13672. "That added employment protection for LGBTQ people."
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"We should not forget for one second that more than 59 million people voted for Clinton and that is by no means a mandate for Trump," said one protester (center). "We're going to hold him accountable every single f---ing day."
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Married couple Matt Simon and Danielle Williams both noted their key concern with Trump as president is racism. "Trump is an authoritarian racist. It feels like a different election to me," Simon said. "We're very sad but then you have to start fighting and organizing," Williams said, adding, "I think about all my friends who no longer feel safe in this country and that devastates me."
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"It feels really good to be out here," South African native Lyndsey Jones said (not pictured), who said she voted to end Apartheid in her birth country. "It's been a really devastating day."
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"I want to show my children there are things we can do," Jodie Fratantuno (second from left) told The Wrap. "I fear for our future," said the mother, who was joined by her two children.
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"This is the best I've felt all day," said Tom Murray, who indicated the demonstration was helping him cope with the outcome of the 2016 presidential election. "I felt like I was kicked in the stomach and felt like I needed to do something," he told TheWrap. "This is different because it's not about policy. It's about fundamental values about respect for other people, decency."
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"That's my base reaction," said Rose Besone (far left), commenting on the idea of a California secession that grew popular on Twitter on Wednesday. "I don't understand the rest of the country, but I do understand that wouldn't be good for the country either."
If you want to join them, they're tentatively planning to gather again on Trump's inauguration day.
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”We’re going to hold him accountable every single f—ing day,“ one demonstrator says of president-elect
As protesters cheered and car horns honked incessantly in protest of President-elect Donald Trump, actress Laura Innes, known for "E.R.," joined roughly 45 other people on a Los Angeles street corner on Wednesday night. "I've known Hillary Clinton forever because I worked on her senate campaign," she told TheWrap. "Most of the people I know were literally crying all day. It does feel good to be out here."
Meriah Doty/TheWrap
Meriah Doty/TheWrap
