After his smears on Rep. John Lewis earlier today, Donald Trump went dead silent on Twitter for the next 12 hours. Likewise, nearly all Republicans in office refused to say a single thing about the ugly rant that their president had just gone on because a civil rights legend hurt his feelings. But the silence wouldn’t last. In a stunning follow-up, Trump went after Lewis and his city of Atlanta again and this time decided to paint his attack with racist lies about the “crime infested inner-cities.”
It was very, very ugly.
Following his original tweets that accused Lewis, a respected Democratic lawmaker from Georgia and a man who had been personally beaten by racist cops while he was marching in Selma in 1965, of being “all talk,” Trump also described the city of Atlanta as in “horrible shape and falling apart,” adding that it was also “crime infested.”
People were quick to point out that these were ridiculous lies and offensive to the people who live and work in Atlanta.
Hardly the most egregious part of the Trump tweet, but Lewis represents the nicest parts of Atlanta. Black congressman does not = slumlord.
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) January 14, 2017
By the way, John Lewis represents a majority-black district where 88% of adults have high school diplomas and 41% have college degrees. pic.twitter.com/R17EmvMn8c
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) January 14, 2017
But if that weren’t quite overtly racist enough, Trump decided to double down on the imagery that would incite white supremacists around the country. In his latest tweet, Trump adds that not only are the cities “crime infested” but that they are “burning” - evoking a racist image of rioting African Americans looting and torching storefronts.
Congressman John Lewis should finally focus on the burning and crime infested inner-cities of the U.S. I can use all the help I can get!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 15, 2017
People saw through its racist undertones immediately.
"burning," which has no basis in reality, is there solely to evoke "riots full of angry black people" https://t.co/P19o6XH7Xz
— John Krizel (@jkrizel) January 15, 2017
Burning? People who said he was stuck in 1980s proven wrong. Stuck in 1960s! https://t.co/Kz17WPZSE9
— Josh Gerstein (@joshgerstein) January 15, 2017
The fuck does he mean by "burning"? Where did that word choice come from? This dude's urban planning advisor is Snake Plissken.
— Luke O'Neil (@lukeoneil47) January 15, 2017
'Burning?' Tiresome. You need help alright. https://t.co/vi0m459EyX
— Jeffrey Wright (@jfreewright) January 15, 2017
Trump appears to be playing right into the fevered imaginations of Fox News viewers. The network routinely drums up racial antipathy by playing clips of burning cars and broken windows when they discuss anti-racist movements like Black Lives Matter or the protests in Ferguson. In some cases, Fox affiliates have been caught using fake photos to further prove how violent the inner city is, as was the case when one local Fox station pretended this image from Venezuela came from Baltimore.
This all began because John Lewis flatly stated that he did not respect the incoming president and would not be attending his inauguration. From there, Trump has disparaged millions of Americans who live in cities. He’s spat on the city officials and police officers that keep those communities safe and have worked hard to clean up many urban areas that were once struggling with poverty and violence. He proves that he has absolutely no idea what the “inner city” looks like or what the problems it faces truly are.
In short, Trump just proved that he does not deserve to respect of John Lewis or any other American who has devoted their life to public service and progress.
Featured image via Drew Angerer/Getty Images
