Editor’s note: This letter was originally published five years ago today.
Encourages violence
Wednesday morning, President Trump retweeted a set of anti-Muslim videos originally circulated by a British right-wing fringe party. These videos can serve no purpose other than to incite fear and hatred of Muslims, and may possibly encourage violence against Muslims living peacefully in the United States.
The president’s actions are reminiscent of the anti-Jewish propaganda circulated in Germany by the Nazis during their own rise to power, which set the stage for the murder of 6 million Jews at the hands of the Nazis and their allies.
How can an American president—the leader of a nation of immigrants established on the promise of civil liberties and equal protection for all—do such a thing? A better question might be: How can our members of Congress stand by silently while he does it?
I believe it is time for Arkansas’ congressional delegation—good, decent men, by all accounts—to publicly denounce these hateful actions by President Trump. If they do not, they are complicit in whatever evil may result from his actions.
JOHN KAMINAR
Bryant