Alex Nogales, the president and CEO of the National Hispanic Media Coalition, called out President Trump on Monday for his “shameful and hypocritical” response to the white nationalist and neo-Nazi protestors who gathered in Charlottesville, Virginia, over the weekend.
“All the Nazis, Klan members and other white Nationalists have been emboldened by the constant hate speech coming from the mouth of the President. Yet he refuses to accept responsibility for creating an atmosphere of intolerance and racism where these groups have flourished and act out their hatred,” Nogales said in a statement.
“The President’s response to their actions is also shameful and hypocritical. He is actually equating the actions of the counter demonstrators to the rampaging violence of the white, racist Nationalists,” his statement continued. “We need to, all of us, stand up to every racist word he utters and challenge him for emboldening the hate mongers and hate groups whose criminal acts are harming the lives and spirits of all Americans.”
On Saturday, President Trump failed to condemn white nationalists and neo-Nazis. “We condemn in strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry, and violence — on many sides,” he said in a statement, which sparked outrage from liberals and conservatives alike who criticized the president for not denouncing the hate-charged groups.
On Friday, a group of white nationalists gathered to protest the planned removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert. E. Lee. They were met with counter-protestors, and the clashing of the two groups led to violence, which only intensified Saturday. When a vehicle driven by a white nationalist activist plowed into a crowd Saturday at the rally, Heather Heyer, a 32-year-old paralegal from Virginia, was killed, and 19 others were injured. More than 30 were hurt in total as a result of events at the rally.
The NHMC is a media advocacy group for the equitable distribution, access and representation of Latinos in the media.