FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 16, 2019
CONTACT: Sara Spain, [email protected], 202.864.0267
BEND THE ARC: HOUSE VOTE AFFIRMS THE PRESIDENT’S RACISM IS UNACCEPTABLE
New York – Following the House of Representatives’ successful passage of a resolution of disapproval condemning President Trump’s racist attacks on progressive women of color in Congress, Stosh Cotler, CEO of Bend the Arc: Jewish Action, released the following statement:
“We are grateful that House Democratic Leadership acted swiftly to issue a formal condemnation of the President’s overtly racist attacks on democratically elected leaders. A majority of our Representatives have affirmed what should not need to be affirmed: that it is unacceptable for the President of the United States to sow racial division and traffic in the politics of bigotry.
"At the same time, the fact that nearly all GOP House members cowardly voted not to condemn these comments is both utterly shameful and unsurprising. Their votes further reveal either their total alignment with Trump’s white nationalist worldview or their complicity with an agenda that puts us all at risk. We are also appalled by Republicans’ cynical attempts to defend President Trump’s racism by weaponizing false accusations of antisemitism against progressives. American Jews see these efforts for what they are and reject leaders who exploit our pain while using antisemitic rhetoric when it suits them politically. We also will not let the President further distract from the atrocities his administration is committing against immigrant families and communities.
“Tonight’s vote is an important statement against racism, but Congress must go further in holding Trump accountable with a forceful, unrelenting opposition to Trump’s agenda of hatred, bigotry and violence. That means defunding the agencies responsible for implementing Trump’s anti-immigrant policies, ending voter suppression and other policies aimed at reducing the political power of Black and brown communities, and advancing a vision of a multiracial democracy that fully embraces our diversity as Americans.”
