This weekend, Saturday Night Live (SNL) will be hosted by Donald Trump. The billionaire candidate for president has been criticized for his hateful rhetoric throughout his campaign. Most notably, Trump initiated his candidacy for president with the following statement:
"When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending the best. They are sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime and they are rapists, and some, I assume are good people..."
Soon after, we saw that such hateful rhetoric has consequences, or so we thought.
Stating that "respect and dignity for all people are cornerstones of our values," NBCUniversal ended its business relationship with Trump. The network announced he would no longer host The Celebrity Apprentice, and canceled the scheduled broadcasts of Miss Universe and Miss USA Pageants, which are co-owned by Trump.
The candidates running for office appear on SNL to appeal to the masses. SNL is an iconic institution that has contributed a great deal to American pop culture. The parodies and comedic skits of politics and the news featured on SNL resonate with millions of Americans. By allowing Trump to host SNL, the network has reversed its principle position and sent a clear message to Latino audiences that racist jokes about Latinos are now part of mainstream comedy.
Donald Trump is not fit to serve in any elected office, much less as President of the United States. His support for the mass deportation of 11 million undocumented people and ending birthright citizenship would have detrimental effects. Trump has used his hateful views regarding the Latino community to win political points with his disconnected base and it seems that some of his more 'passionate' followers took notice.
We must all remember that hateful rhetoric often leads to hateful conduct. A clear example can be seen in what happened in Boston, Massachusetts. Not long after Trump made his racist remarks, two white males brutally beat and urinated on a Latino man simply because he was Latino. The victim suffered a broken nose and bruises to his head and torso. According to police reports, the perpetrators were "inspired in part" by Trump's hateful rhetoric.
There has been strong opposition to Trump hosting SNL this Saturday. Some individuals have suggested that we should not prevent Trump from hosting SNL but that instead we should voice our opposition by not watching. This view misses the point. Trump has targeted Latinos with his racist and xenophobic remarks and his rhetoric is causing real harm to the Latino community. We cannot allow him the time nor a platform such as SNL to advance such views. Allowing Trump to host a widely popular program is nothing short of a slap in the face to the more than 50 million Latinos living in the U.S. whose only wish is the opportunity to work hard and provide for their families.
On Wednesday, November 4, 2015 at 6:00 P.M. LULAC, along with other respected Latino organizations, will be holding a protest in front of Rockefeller Center. We urge those who want to help us deliver the message to join us in reminding SNL and Trump that racism under any guise must be rejected by all Americans.
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