“Jokes” at Trump Rally Cause Commotion Among Voters
Image Credit: donaldjtrump.com
Support for the Harris campaign grows among celebrities and crucial voters after backlash from Donald Trump’s Sunday rally in New York.
While it seems former President Trump is in the news frequently for his controversial remarks, comic Tony Hinchcliffe, better known as Kill Tony, took headlines this weekend after opening Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally with a spew of racially motivated “jokes.”
“These Latinos, they love making babies, too. Just know that they do. There’s no pulling out; they don’t do that. They come inside, just like they did to our country,” Hinchcliffe said. “I don’t know if you guys know this, but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
These remarks, along with others aimed at the Black community, sparked outrage among voters of color, especially the Latinx community, a group deemed necessary to win the election for either party.
While laughs were heard from Trump supporters in the crowd, opposite reactions were shared across all media platforms, from TikTok to X, formerly known as Twitter, and especially Instagram. Puerto Rican celebrities such as Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin expressed their disgust and disappointment in the offensive statements.
“We are the definition of heart and resistance,” Bad Bunny said. “For those who forget who we are … don't worry, we will proudly remind them.”
With less than a week left until Election Day, Trump’s campaign could take a major hit and give his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, a larger lead in the swing states needed to win. According to Pew Research, as of 2021 “Puerto Ricans are the second-largest population of Hispanic origin living in the United States,” made up of roughly 5.8 million people. Over 486,000 Puerto Ricans live in Pennsylvania, the state in which both candidates have done the most campaigning.
In California, a state known for its large Latinx community and influence, voters are left astounded by the statements. Voters such as Sherlyn Rodriguez and Prescott Neiswender, students at California State University, Long Beach, express how a culmination of Trump’s actions, along with jokes made by Hinchcliffe, only strengthen their decision to cast their votes in the ballot boxes.
“If he is willing to have a person like Tony Hinchcliffe speak at his rally, that’s proof enough that he’s okay with those statements being correlated with his agenda,” said Rodriguez, a first-generation Mexican American and registered Democratic voter. “I don’t want someone who humors that in office.”
Neiswender, a white independent voter, said, “If you are going to be making an argument against immigration and how it is negatively impacting the country, it should at least be fact-based, not comedian-based.”
With Nov. 5 around the corner, the race is closer than ever and every vote will weigh in heavily on Election Day.