by DANIEL NUSSBAUM20 Jan 20164,964
Dozens of celebrities and activists have joined a new campaign aimed at derailing the presidential prospects of Republican frontrunner Donald Trump and the “politics of hate and exclusion he represents.”
Michael Moore, Kerry Washington, Rosie O’Donnell, Harry Belafonte, Jane Fonda, Dylan McDermott, Roseann Barr, and Lily Tomlin are among the film and television stars who have pledged to “speak out in every way possible” to prevent Trump from becoming the next President of the United States as part of the new “Stop Hate Dump Trump” campaign.
In a statement on its website, the group says it believes Trump is “a grave threat to democracy, freedom, human rights, equality, and the welfare of our country and all our people.”
“We have witnessed Trump inciting hatred against Muslims, immigrants, women, the disabled,” the campaign’s website reads. “We have seen him evidencing dangerous tendencies that threaten the bedrock of democracy: unleashing a lynch mob mentality against protesters, calling for the expulsion of Muslims from the country, bullying, and fear-mongering.”
“History has shown us what happens when people refuse to stand against hate-filled leaders,” statement continues. “We pledge ourselves to speak out in every way possible against the politics of hate and exclusion he represents.”
Other notable signatories on the campaign include Noam Chomsky, Connie Britton, Rosanna Arquette, Reza Aslan, Ani DiFranco, Danny Glover, and playwright Eve Ensler.
“We are offering Americans a chance to be heard and engage in action, as Trump’s campaign gains momentum even as he increases his hateful and divisive rhetoric,” Ensler said in a statement.
At the time of publication, the campaign had gathered 780 signatures.
The campaign website features a number of examples of what it calls Trump’s “hate,” including statements that are critical of former Secretary of State and Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The group also included Trump’s vow to “blow up” and defeat the Islamic State terror group in its list of hateful comments the candidate has said.
Other celebrities have launched their own anti-Trump campaigns in recent months.
In December, veteran television producer Norman Lear announced that his organization People for the American Way would launch an initiative to combat what he called Trump’s “hate speech and anti-Muslim rhetoric.”
A month earlier, Oscar-winning director Alejandro Inarritu and actor Diego Luna joined other Hispanic cultural leaders in signing a letter similarly condemning Trump’s “hate speech,” which they claimed was causing “physical aggressions against Hispanics.”
The anti-Trump campaign was announced just days before the first-in-the-nation presidential caucus kicks off in Iowa on February 1.
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