Toronto Star

Be vigilant against Trump spillover

-

Re Trump stuns in off-script tirade, Aug. 16 Unbelievab­ly, U.S. President Donald Trump has opened the door to further persecutio­n of minorities, particular­ly Jewish people, Black people and Muslims.

He has the nerve to speak about murders by illegal immigrants when thousand of killings are committed by American citizens, and to condemn the actions of leftist protesters in Charlottes­ville, Va.

By emboldenin­g neo-Nazis and the KKK, Trump is endorsing the defacement of synagogues and possible action against Muslims. Some melting pot! However, we Canadians should not feel too smug. Yes, we don’t carry concealed weapons and, on the whole, we are more tolerant. But there is plenty of racism up here, although it is more subtle.

And now that Trump has failed to condemn the far-right, there may be a spillover effect here, if not in action, then in attitude. Hopefully, there will not be an increase in the defacement of synagogues or racist graffiti.

One thing remains true: Donald Trump has already become the worst president the United States has ever had. Let us hope his lunacy does not cause anything catastroph­ic. Michael Kaczer, Newmarket There was a little bit of truth in Donald Trump’s remarks yesterday. Robert E. Lee was a revered figure in the South following the Civil War and remains a historical and cultural icon to many white southerner­s — not all of whom are neo-Nazis or KKK.

Before the terrorist attack on the counter-protesters, there were clashes between white supremacis­ts and counter-protesters near the statue of Robert E. Lee.

In that incident, there probably was blame on both sides. Dave Keeley, Mississaug­a

 ?? THEO MOUDAKIS/TORONTO STAR ??
THEO MOUDAKIS/TORONTO STAR

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Canada