Condemning the hate speech of Donald Trump

By Dr. Jeffrey Haggray

I join my voice to the swelling chorus of American citizens who are compelled to condemn the hate speech and the threatening actions of Mr. Donald Trump.

Mr. Trump is using the platform afforded to him as president of the United States to attack members of the U.S. Congress, citizens of the United States and migrants to this country in the most racist, vile and uncivil manner possible.

While I will not dignify his words by restating them here, Trump’s public statements directed to U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings and the people of Baltimore, toward congresswomen of color—U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley—along with his personal attacks on other members of Congress, in combination with his mean-spirited and vicious comments about migrants at our United States border, amount to an irrefutable, uncivilized and unpresidential abuse of the office of president of the United States.

We have not witnessed such vile and hateful displays of racism, antagonism and incivility by an American president in this lifetime.  There is no part of Trump’s hate speech that can be defended, affirmed or interpreted otherwise.

I call on all people of faith, good will and decency to reject racial hatred, bigotry, xenophobia, sexism and classism—such as is displayed daily by Mr. Trump—and to do all within our means to write a more civilized future story for the good of our American democracy and civilization.

Dr. Jeffrey Haggray is executive director of American Baptist Home Mission Societies.