Trump labelled ‘an insult’ to civil rights ceremony
UNITED STATES: Democratic Congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis said yesterday he won’t speak at the opening of Mississippi civil rights and history museums, saying it is an ‘‘insult’' that US President Donald Trump will attend.
The long-planned weekend ceremony will mark Mississippi’s bicentennial of admission to the union. But what was intended as a moment of racial unity and atonement in the state with the largest share of AfricanAmericans is descending into racial and partisan strife, after Republican Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant invited fellow Republican Trump to attend.
The National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) has said Trump should cancel attending because of his divisive record on civil rights issues.
Lewis, of Georgia, revealed his decision in a joint statement with Bennie Thompson, Mississippi’s only Democrat in Congress.
‘‘President Trump’s attendance and his hurtful policies are an insult to the people portrayed in this civil rights museum,’' they said.
‘‘[His] disparaging comments about women, the disabled, immigrants and National Football League players disrespect the efforts of Fannie Lou Hamer, Aaron Henry, Medgar Evers, Robert Clark, James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner and countless others who have given their all for Mississippi to be a better place.’'
Lewis and Thompson join other prominent Democrats in the state who have pulled out since Trump’s visit was announced. The chair of the state’s black legislative caucus, Democrat Sonya Williams Barnes, is urging people to stay away.
‘‘I will await a time to visit the museum with my family without the president disrespecting the men and women who sacrificed their lives for the freedoms I am privileged to have today,’' Barnes said.
The White House later issued a statement calling it ‘‘unfortunate’' that Lewis and Thompson would not join the president in honouring the ‘‘incredible sacrifice civil rights leaders made to right the injustices in our history’'.
It said Trump hoped others would join him in recognising ‘‘that the movement was about removing barriers and unifying Americans of all backgrounds’'.
Some say Trump’s record on racial issues makes his presence offensive, and plan to protest. Bryant, who has made frequent trips to Washington to work with Trump, is urging Mississippians to embrace the president’s visit, saying it will help to bring worldwide attention to the state and the museums.
‘‘We are better than that,’' Bryant said of those who oppose Trump. ‘‘We are kinder and more tolerant here in Mississippi than I think perhaps other places. Allow the president to come and honour Mississippi with his speech and his presence.’'
Lewis was arrested in Jackson in 1961 with Freedom Riders who were protesting segregated bus travel. He was held at the infamous Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman. Later, as head of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee, he helped to organise Freedom Summer, a volunteer effort to register voters in Mississippi in 1964.
Lewis had been expected to be one of the main speakers at the event, along with Myrlie Evers, the widow of assassinated Mississippi NAACP leader Medgar Evers. She has said she will address Trump’s presence.
‘‘If God gives me the breath and the strength, I will address his attendance when I stand to speak.’'
This is in line with the thinking of those who say AfricanAmericans shouldn’t abandon the platform to Trump. The Rev CJ Rhodes, a prominent AfricanAmerican clergyman, tweeted that Lewis’s ‘‘voice is needed here now more than ever’'. Rhodes said he still planned to attend. – AP