John,

It’s been two years since we lost Heather Heyer during a white supremacist ‘Unite the Right’ rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Neo-Nazis and far-right extremists infiltrated Virginia to march in support of “whiteness,” carrying Confederate and Nazi flags. They trampled on Charlottesville to spew racist hate speech and threaten violence against people of color.

Heather was protesting the racist march when a car driven by a neo-Nazi deliberately drove into a crowd of people, killing Heather and injuring dozens more.

It was one of the most heartbreaking, shocking, and disturbing moments in modern American history. Children learn about the KKK in school books, but here it was right in front of them -- in 2017. People often think of overt racism as a thing of the past, but here it was happening right in front of all of us.

And Trump, whose job it is as president to comfort Americans in times of tragedy, to stand up for what’s right, to denounce hate in all its forms, to be a leader we can trust, said, “You also had people who were very fine on both sides.”

Very fine people on both sides?

Since that day in 2017, things have only gotten worse. Trump doesn’t care about the American people. Trump doesn’t care about communities of color. Time and time again, he has sided with his far-right base, neo-Nazis, and white supremacists, doing whatever it takes to maintain his grip on power by refusing to condemn these hate groups.

Just last week, a mass shooter targeted immigrants and people of color in El Paso, Texas. He published an anti-immigrant manifesto, using Trump’s racist rhetoric. He killed at least 20 people.

And while this time Trump condemned white supremacy by reading a prepared speech for the cameras, he refused to acknowledge his role in it. He refused to admit that his hate speech, his discriminatory policies, and his silence on these issues has allowed hate groups to flourish under his presidency.

Trump is racist and with every passing day he sits in the Oval Office, more people get hurt. There is no turning back: if you support Trump, you are complicit in racism and white supremacist ideology.

If you believe Trump is racist, sign our petition now. We’re demanding that every Republican member of Congress stand on the right side of history and condemn Trump’s racist speech, behavior, and policies.

We’re at a dark crossroads in America. One day our children and grandchildren will ask us what we did during the Trump presidency. Make sure you can tell them you fought back.

Thank you,

-Yvette

Yvette Simpson, CEO
Democracy for America