U.S. Republican Presidential former President Donald Trump speaks to attendees in a rally at the Bojangles Coliseum on July 24, 2024 in Charlotte, North Carolina Photo: Shutterstock
Puerto Rican celebrities have come out strong for Kamala Harris after a comedian made a racist joke about the island while speaking at a rally for Donald Trump.
“There’s a lot going on,” Tony Hinchcliffe, whose stage name is Kill Tony, told the crowd at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. “I don’t know if you know this but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
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Among the many enraged Puerto Rican celebrities to speak out against this racism was out gay pop star Ricky Martin, who shared a video from the Harris campaign to his Instagram story in which the vice president discussed her plans to support Puerto Rico.
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Harris posted the video the same day of the rally but did so before it took place.
Throughout my career, I’ve always fought for the people of Puerto Rico. Every chance he got, Donald Trump abandoned and insulted them.
As president, I will invest in Puerto Rico’s future so that Puerto Ricans can not just get by, but get ahead. pic.twitter.com/jkqOPWBhIy
Martin also included a post in his story with the clip of Hinchcliffe’s comments before accusing Instagram of shadow-banning it.
The Harris video Martin shared with his 18.6 million followers depicts the Democratic presidential candidate praising the talent, innovation, and ambition coming from Puerto Rico.
“Puerto Ricans deserve a president who sees and invests in that strength,” Harris said, sharing the details of her plan to boost the island’s economy, which includes the creation of a Puerto Rico Opportunity Economy Task Force to bring community leaders, nonprofits, private businesses, and the federal government together to bring “thousands of jobs.” She also promised to “cut red tape” to rebuild and modernize the island’s energy grid “to ensure all Puerto Ricans have access to reliable, affordable electricity.”
Harris also said she would “never forget” what Donald Trump did and what he did not do when he was president and Puerto Rico was hit by two devastating hurricanes in a row. She said he “abandoned the island, tried to block aid,” and “offered nothing more than paper towels and insults,” referring to the infamous video of Trump throwing paper towels into a crowd of people seeking hurricane relief.
“Puerto Ricans deserve better,” Harris said.
Joining Martin in rallying for Harris is Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez, and Despacito singer Luis Fonsi. Bad Bunny posted the same videos Martin did, as did Fonsi, who wrote of the hateful comments that he loves comedy and roasts but that “this is far from comedy.”
“Not now, not against my island, my people,” he continued, adding that he respects people with different views but is “not ok with this constant hate.”
“It’s been abundantly clear that these people have no respect for us and yet they want our vote.”
Jennifer Lopez reposted a series from Harris’ own Instagram account outlining her plans to revitalize Puerto Rico’s economy. The Harris team happened to have unveiled her plans for the island the same day Hinchcliffe made his hateful comment.
Harris campaign staffer Brian McBride posted that the simultaneous endorsements from Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez, and Ricky Martin is “the Puerto Rican version of the Avengers joining forces to support Kamala Harris,” noting that the stars have a combined more than 315 million followers on Instagram alone.
Bad Bunny, J. Lo and Ricky Martin have over 315 million followers on Instagram alone. This is the Puerto Rican version of the Avengers joining forces to support Kamala Harris. pic.twitter.com/MjRoMkD6YI
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), whose mother was born and raised in Puerto Rico, also joined the chorus of voices condemning the racist comment at the Trump rally. She encouraged every Puerto Rican person reading her post to “take that rally clip and drop it in your family WhatsApps and group chats,” especially if they have family members in swing states. “And give them the link to http://IWillVote.com while you’re at it.”
Organizing ask: I need every Boricua on here to take that rally clip and drop it in your family WhatsApps and group chats. 🇵🇷🇵🇷🇵🇷🇵🇷🇵🇷
ESPECIALLY if you have family in these states. And give them the link to https://t.co/0UX182dJe5 while you’re at it.
Harris also posted a series of headlines calling out Trump’s rally for not only insulting Puerto Ricans but also for insulting Arab, Latino, Black, and Jewish Americans.
The New York Times called the rally ” a closing carnival of grievances, misogyny and racism.”
Trump’s friend David Rem called Harris “the devil” and “the Antichrist.” Businessman Grant Cardone referred to Harris’s staff as “pimp handlers,” saying they would help her “destroy our country.”
And Hinchcliffe said of Latinos, “They love making babies too, just know that. They do, they do. There’s no pulling out. They don’t do that. They come inside, just like they did to our country.”
The Trump campaign has attempted to distance itself from Hinchcliffe’s comments.
“This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign,” said senior campaign adviser Danielle Alvarez in a statement.
