translated from Spanish: [VIDEO] “And white people too”: Trump gets upset about journalist’s question about the deaths of African-Americans at the hands of the police

U.S. President Donald Trump was angered Tuesday about a reporter’s question about the deaths of African-Americans at the hands of the police and defended the right to display Confederate flags, in a couple of interviews in which he continued to push for racial divisions. In an interview, the question of why African-Americans were still dying at the hands of the police seemed to take the representative off guard.” And white people, too. White people, too. What a terrible question to ask. White people, too,” Trump told CBS’s Catherine Herridge. “More white people, by the way. More white people.” There is no national database that records police shootings. But several studies have shown that black Americans are much more likely to die at the hands of the police, even if there are more white deceased, who are a larger portion of the country’s population. For example, a study focusing on the use of lethal force by security forces between 2009 and 2012 concluded that while the victims were mostly white (52%), blacks were a disproportionate percentage (32%) and with a 2.8 times higher mortality rate for black affected people than for whites. Jeffery Robinson of the American Civil Liberties Union issued a harsh statement stating that Trump’s response “not only ignores the fact that black people die disproportionately at the hands of the police, lay the foundations for the dangerous and unconstitutional police practices that often lead to the deaths of black people.” Trump’s racism is so absolute that he continues to refuse to give an apex of recognition to the epidemic of police violence against black people in America,” Robinson said, accusing Trump of “using the violence and suffering inflicted on black communities as a claim to white supremacists before the next election.” In the interview, Trump also defended the use of the Confederate flag, even though in 2015 he said he believed the flag should stay in museums.” All I’m saying is it’s free speech. It’s very simple. My stance is freedom of speech,” Trump said. “Very simple. Like it or not, it’s free speech.” When asked if he understood that the flag is a painful symbol for many because it is a reminder of slavery, Trump told CBS that some people “love it,” adding, “And I know that people who like the Confederate flag are not thinking about slavery.” Trump has been heavily criticized for his response to massive protests against racism across the country following the death of George Floyd in police custody. Faced with demands for justice and racial equality, Trump has opted for a security-focused message, describing the mostly peaceful protesters as internal “terrorists”, and further stoking divisions. In a second interview with conservative Townhall Media, Trump defended the white St. Louis couple who were recorded brandishing their weapons when defending their home during an anti-racism protest. Trump claimed that Mark and Patricia McCloskey “were going to suffer a hard beating, if they were lucky, ” and said their house could have been “totally razed and probably burned down” if they hadn’t come out with their guns. “And now I think someone local wants to prosecute these people. It’s a disgrace,” he said. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson told the press that he had spoken on the phone Tuesday with Trump and Justice Secretary William Barr and that the president had expressed concern that St. Louis Prosecutor Kim Gardner, who is a Democrat, could bring charges against the couple.” I think the president didn’t like what he saw and the way people are being treated,” Parson said, adding “I think they’ll see some sort of measure.” 

Original source in Spanish