New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio will be moving forward this morning on a plan to paint a Black Lives Matter mural in front of 5th Avenue’s Trump Tower building.
With tweets sent out last night by Trump, there is no mistaking which side of the racist line he stands.
Trump called the mural “a symbol of hate” and said it would “denigrate” 5th Avenue, only days after signing an Executive Order protecting statues and monuments that have put racism on display.
White House staff tried to walk back Trump’s tweets, saying he was referring to members of BLM and not the movement, citing a statement from the president of the Greater New York Black Lives Matter chapter as proof — “If this country doesn’t give us what we want, then we will burn down this system and replace it.”
However, Hawk Newsome, who made that statement, is not affiliated with the National Black Lives Matter Organization. Because of his anarchist rhetoric, BLM has not allowed his self-named splinter group membership into the national organization.
“Only BLM chapters who adhere to BLM’s principles and code of ethics are permitted to use the BLM name, said Kailee Scales, managing director of Black Lives Matter Global Network. “The reason for this is simple: unaffiliated uses of BLM’s name are confusing to people who may wrongly associate the unsanctioned group and its views and actions with BLM.”
Work on the 5th Avenue mural is expected to be completed by the end of today.
UPDATE: It was announced later this morning that the mural would be delayed to an unspecified day next week.
Disclaimer: On January 4, 2016, the owner of WestEastonPA.com began serving on the West Easton Council following an election. Postings and all content found on this website are the opinions of Matthew A. Dees and may not necessarily represent the opinion of the governing body for The Borough of West Easton.
