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NY Times calls on Trump to denounce hateful attacks

by Nikita Vladimirov - 11/11/16 9:38 AM ET

The New York Times on Thursday called for President-elect Donald Trump to denounce acts of violence and vandalism against minorities that have popped up in the U.S. since his election.

{mosads}The newspaper’s editorial board wrote that one of Trump’s first initiatives should be committing to being a president for all Americans and seeking counsel from those who did not vote for him.

It listed off incidents of vandalism and harassment and warned of an “atmosphere of intimidation and fear is unquestionably real and will keep growing.”

“Here’s some guidance right off the bat, Mr. President-elect: Those sentiments will have more force if you immediately and unequivocally repudiate the outpouring of racist, sexist, xenophobic, anti-Semitic and homophobic insults, threats and attacks being associated with your name,” the newspaper wrote.

“Do this in a personal plea to people who supported your candidacy. Tell them this is not what you stand for, nor is it what your new administration will tolerate.”

The Times said the incidents are not surprising given Trump’s own rhetoric.

“The problem, of course, is that Mr. Trump’s campaign was based on appeals — some explicit, some coded — to racial and ethnic resentment and division,” the editorial board wrote.

“His followers heard it starting with his speech declaring his candidacy, warning of Mexican immigrant ‘rapists,’ continuing to a rally last weekend where he promised to bar all Syrian refugees because they ‘will import generations of terrorism, extremism and radicalism into your schools and throughout your communities.'”

According to the Times, Trump’s victory served as a “vindication” of racism and bigotry among those “who have been looking for a license to lash out against immigrants, refugees, minorities and anyone else they find threatening.”

The editorial argued that the president-elect now has a “moral duty” to reject racist and sexist acts coming from some of his supporters adding that every American “deserves to live in safety, with dignity.”

The newspaper also condemned the violence coming from anti-Trump protestors, stating that such acts also have “no space in American political discourse.”

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