Gregory Cheadle, the black man singled out by presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at a Redding, Calif., rally on Friday, said he took no offense when the billionaire urged the crowd to “Look at my African-American over here”.
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In a Tweet posted Saturday morning, Trump highlighted the support he has received from an African-American family, the website Think Progress reported. “The only reason I stand out as a Trump supporter is because I’m black!” he said. Donald Trump has come under fire after he addressed a supporter at one of his rallies as “my African American”. “I know some are saying it was demeaning, objectifying or possessory”.
Trump’s eyebrow-raising remark came during a speech clearly meant to position him as a serious candidate for the Oval Office as the contest shifts from the primary stage to the expected general election contest against Democrat Hillary Clinton. “It was a jovial thing”. Those messages, by those people claiming that Trump is a racist, are infinitely far more damning and racist than Trump’s statement ever could have been misconstrued to portray, ‘ Cheadle said in a telephone interview.
The remarks come as protests intensify between Trump opponents, supporters and police at rallies around the country.
During a rally Friday in California, Trump was talking about a black supporter’s actions at a previous event when he spotted Cheadle in the crowd. It doesn’t matter if Trump has a teleprompter or not, he continues to alienate voters with racist language. And Cheadle is working to be known as more than just “Trump’s African-American”. He said that he’s running for office in a district that is predominantly white and that if he wanted to find some racism, he would be able to do it.
“Looking at it now, I can see on a script – in a transcript, or even somebody watching the clip – I can see how they would jump to the conclusion that it was racist”.
Donald Trump has put his foot in his mouth yet again, though there are already people who wonder whether this mistake is going to stick to him any more than any of his other mistakes.
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“But I never felt anything at all. I refuse to be chained to any particular party”, adding to the Redding Record Searchlight: “I refuse to stay on anyone’s plantations”.
