Charmed actress and noted liberal activist Alyssa Milano has provoked controversy among certain social media users by comparing Trump supporters to members of the infamous white supremacist group the Klu Klux Klan.
The trouble began on January 20, after a video emerged of what appeared to be a group of 'Make America Great Again' baseball-cap-wearing teenagers, (who were pupils from Covington Catholic High School) on a school trip to Washington DC. The boys were allegedly waiting for a bus when they were confronted by people who accused them of being bigots, and were vocally disparaged by members of the Black Hebrew Israelites and a group of native American protestors.
Footage of one of the boys smirking at native American veteran Nathan Phillips, an elder of the Omaha Tribe, soon went viral on social media. Upon viewing the footage, Milano took to Twitter to write: "The red MAGA hat is the new white hood. Without white boys being able to empathize with other people, humanity will continue to destroy itself. #FirstThoughtsWhenIWakeUp. [sic]"
Twitter users were immediately divided by the controversial tweet. Some people were supportive, while others were outraged. For instance, one of Milano's supporters wrote: "There is a commonality for sure! Both are derived off of hate and fear of people that don't look like them. Both have radical views. They are different views; but both radical. MAGA folks don't believe in climate change, they lock families up, and create travels bans. [sic]"
However, another disgruntled Twitter-user chimed in: "I have been a huge fan all my life. I'm a normal moderate liberal, but I can't stand this SJW, PC, reactionary virtue-signalling culture the far left has become. You're starting to cross that line. 'New white hood?' Seriously? I'm not even a Trump supporter and I know that's crazy. [sic]"
Milano later responded to her critics with a follow-up tweet, writing: "Let’s not forget—this entire event happened because a group of boys went on a school-sanctioned trip to protest against a woman’s right to her own body and reproductive healthcare. It is not debatable that bigotry was at play from the start."
Since the first video went viral, a second and longer clip had been uploaded, which appears to show a different side of the story. In this footage, the high school students had been lambasted by the Black Hebrew Israelites, who hurled all manner of racist and homophobic slurs at them. The students apparently then begin chanting their high school cheer to keep their spirits up and diffuse tension.
Thus far, Milano has not responded to the longer version of the original video. However, on Wednesday, January 23 she did write: "Apparently, I’m in 'hot water' and facing 'backlash'. So .. .I’m going to do what any thoughtful human with a platform would do ... write an op-ed. Stay tuned." Only time will tell what her response will be.
