Humans of New York Has a Blistering Message for Donald Trump
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Brandon Stanton, the creator of popular Facebook page Humans of New York, published a viral scathing open letter to Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Monday.
Stanton, a photojournalist who has more than 17 million Facebook fans, wrote that he tries his "hardest not to be political" but felt compelled to speak out against Trump, whose rally in Chicago was canceled last weekend due to chaos and violence among the crowd.
"I’ve come to realize that opposing you is no longer a political decision. It is a moral one," Stanton wrote.
Stanton also called Trump out for retweeting hateful users on Twitter, holding off on speaking out against the Ku Klux Klan, and promoting a wildly aggressive approach to terrorism.
"I’ve watched you retweet racist images. I’ve watched you retweet racist lies. I’ve watched you take 48 hours to disavow white supremacy. I’ve watched you joyfully encourage violence, and promise to ‘pay the legal fees’ of those who commit violence on your behalf. I’ve watched you advocate the use of torture and the murder of terrorists’ families. I’ve watched you gleefully tell stories of executing Muslims with bullets dipped in pig blood. I’ve watched you compare refugees to ‘snakes,’ and claim that ‘Islam hates us.'"
AP/Reiri Kurihara - apimages.com
Stanton concluded that the "hateful one" is Trump after doing extensive interviews with Muslims and refugees over the past few years. This is an apparent reference to Trump's call to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. last year.
"Those of us who have been paying attention will not allow you to rebrand yourself. You are not a ‘unifier,'" Stanton wrote. "You are not ‘presidential.’ You are not a ‘victim’ of the very anger that you’ve joyfully enflamed for months. You are a man who has encouraged prejudice and violence in the pursuit of personal power. And though your words will no doubt change over the next few months, you will always remain who you are."
Stanton's post already has nearly 330,000 reactions as of writing time and garnered ample love from fans:
Humans of New York Facebook - facebook.com
Stanton created Humans of New York five years ago to "create a photographic census of New York City," according to his 2013 book on the project. Stanton's book took the No. 1 spot on the New York Times hardcover nonfiction bestseller list within a week of going on sale three years ago. Since its creation, Humans of New York has aimed to tell the stories of regular people Stanton encounters on the street. Last year, Humans of New York featured a teenager named Vidal Chastanet who talked about the positive influence of his principal Nadia Lopez. The White House got word of Chastanet's story and invited him and Lopez to the White House:
Last year, the Facebook page made headlines when it shared a heartbreaking image of a young boy alongside his quote: "I'm homosexual and I'm afraid about what my future will be and that people won't like me."
The image received more than 680,000 likes and even received messages of encouragement from Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and comedian Ellen DeGeneres.
Humans of New York Facebook - facebook.com
"Prediction from a grown-up: Your future is going to be amazing," Clinton wrote. "You will surprise yourself with what you're capable of and the incredible things you go on to do. Find the people who love and believe in you - there will be lots of them. –H"
DeGeneres, who came out as a lesbian in the 1990s, also sent her support:
Humans of New York Facebook - facebook.com
"Not only will people like you, they'll love you," DeGeneres wrote. "I just heard of you and I love you already."
