Puerto Rico’s Archbishop Demands Trump ‘Personally’ Apologize After Rally Backlash
The Archbishop of San Juan, Puerto Rico, has demanded Republican candidate Donald Trump personally apologize after controversial comedian Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage” and made racist comments about Latinos during Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
“I enjoy a good joke,” Archbishop Roberto O. González Nieves wrote in a letter to the former president posted to El Visitante de Puerto Rico, a non-profit organization, on Monday. “However, humor has its limits. It should not insult or denigrate the dignity and sacredness of people. Hinchcliffe’s remarks do not only provoke sinister laughter but hatred. These kinds of remarks do not have a place in a society founded upon ‘liberty and justice for all.’”
Archbishop González Nieves added that he had consulted with his “brother bishops of Puerto Rico” and was “dismayed and appalled” by Hinchcliffe’s remarks.
“Hinchcliffe’s remarks do not promote a climate of equality, fraternity and good will among and for all women and men of every race, color and way of life which is the foundation of the American dream,” González Nieves continued in the letter. “These kinds of remarks should not be a part of the political discourse of a civilized society.”
While Hinchcliffe’s hateful rhetoric during Trump’s New York rally gained widespread backlash from among both Democrats and Republicans, they come at not surprise. Throughout Trump’s campaign, he has repeatedly referred to migrants as “poisoning the blood of our country,” demonized undocumented immigrants, and promised “bloody” mass deportations should he be elected to a second term.
Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin doubled down on their endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris following the firestorm from Hinchcliffe’s set. Together with Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny, the artists reposted a video of Harris outlining her agenda to build an “opportunity economy” for Puerto Rico.
“I will never forget what Donald Trump did and what he did not do when Puerto Rico needed a caring and competent leader,” said Harris in the clip. “He abandoned the island. He tried to block aid after back-to-back devastating hurricanes and offered nothing more than paper towels and insults.”
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