The risks of Trump retweeting anti-Muslim messages

Judy Woodruff:

President Trump is well-known for his use of the digital social media platform Twitter, both to tout his accomplishments and to lambaste and make fun of others.

But this morning, he ignited a new firestorm when he shared what are widely seen as virulent anti-Muslim messages.

The president said nothing about the furor as he left the White House today. Hours earlier, he had retweeted three videos originally posted by a British far-right activist.

One, from Syria in 2013, shows a Muslim man railing against idols and smashing a statue of the Virgin Mary. In a second, also from 2013, Islamist protesters in Egypt attack opponents, and throw one off a roof. The third video, from earlier this year, shows what it claims is a teenage Muslim migrant in the Netherlands beating up a youth who is on crutches.

Dutch news accounts say the attacker wasn't a migrant and never mentioned the boys' religions.

The clips were first shared by Jayda Fransen, a leader of Britain First, a far-right fringe group that opposes what it calls the Islamization of Britain.

President Trump's retweets touched off a storm in the House of Commons.

Chuka Umunna:

Somebody in his position, doing what he has done and said, not only in his own country, but now, you know, getting involved in the debate here, he's normalizing hatred.

Judy Woodruff:

And in a statement, a spokesman for British Prime Minister Theresa May said "It is wrong for the president to have done this."

But White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders defended the retweets, as she acknowledged they may be misleading.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders:

Whether it's a real video, the threat is real. And that is what the president is talking about.

Judy Woodruff:

Sanders also said Prime Minister May and other world leaders — quote — "know that these are real threats."

For more, I'm joined now by Rizwan Jaka. He runs interfaith and government relations for the All Dulles Area Muslims Society, or ADAMS Center, the second largest mosque in the United States, located in Virginia. And Jonathan Greenblatt, he's the CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, a civil rights group. He served on the staff of the Obama White House.

And we welcome both of you to the program.

Rizwan Jaka, let me start with you.

I watched all threes of these videos. They're very disturbing to look at, particularly the one throwing a young man off a rooftop, another one beating up a young man in crutches.

Are these real videos?

Rizwan Jaka:

So, I mean, first and foremost, obviously, those actions in those videos, there are some reports that some of them may have been — we're not sure exactly the authenticity.

Regardless, those are horrific actions, and they do not represent the Muslim community's principles and the Islamic principles. We absolutely condemn those actions, whatever they may be, real or fake. Obviously, we are absolutely concerned about this retweet and the anti-Muslim sentiment behind it.

Judy Woodruff:

Jonathan Greenblatt, what was your reaction when you saw the president's retweets?

Jonathan Greenblatt:

Well, I think all of us were fairly stunned to see the retweets.

The fact of the matter is, extremists already feel emboldened because the president has repeatedly equivocated on the unequivocal, whether it was after Charlottesville or any number of other incidences. There are no fine people among the Nazis.

But the fact of the matter is, is when you're President Trump, retweets are endorsements. And so we track it. And we weren't surprised to see David Duke and other right-wing extremists celebrating today that the president is pushing out prejudice.

Judy Woodruff:

Rizwan Jaka, what does it represent to you when you see this from the president?

Rizwan Jaka:

You know, it represents just kind of an amplifying of anti-Muslim sentiment and these — you know, trumping up these stereotypes.

And it is something that is very concerning to us because there's a rise in hate crimes and bigotry towards Muslims. Obviously, there's continuous hate crimes towards the Jewish community and other communities.

And we're very concerned about that, that this amplification of these messages, as the Anti-Defamation League has said, this isn't the first time. There have been retweets of anti-Semitic propaganda and other propaganda, so we stand against anti-Muslim bigotry, anti-Semitic bigotry, or anti — any bigotry.

And we need to come together and respond to bad with good and we stand against violent extremism and terrorism. These videos play on that narrative that Muslims are inherently violent or anti-democratic. And that's false. Muslims condemn terrorism. We're partners in national security and want to protect our country.

Judy Woodruff:

Jonathan Greenblatt, what can you tell us about this group in Britain called Britain First and this woman who the president has retweeted?

Jonathan Greenblatt:

So, Britain First is an extremist right-wing organization based in the U.K. that spun out of another extremist group, the English Defense League.

They style themselves as Christian warriors of sorts. But the fact of the matter is, they are regarded by leaders across the political spectrum in England as being a fringe organization that no one wants to stand with.

The woman who developed this first tweet, she herself has been dealt with in the courts and they have taken legal action against her for harassing a Muslim woman wearing a hijab. The organization has been banned from mosques because they literally tried to burst into houses of worship to disrupt Muslim activities.

These are not normal people. And the problem is that, again, when the president tweets out their messages, he validates something that clashes with American values and the values of all good people.

Judy Woodruff:

Rizwan Jaka, we heard the White House spokeswoman say today, well, whatever, whether these videos are fake or not, the threat is real. How did you take that?

Rizwan Jaka:

Well, you know, again, you know, Muslims are partners in national security. There is a threat from violent extremists that have foreign connections. There's a threat from domestic extremists.

And if you look actually, you know, after the horrific attack in Las Vegas or in Sutherland, Texas, there is a violent spectrum that we need to deal with. We, as Muslims, will stand against violent extremism that comes from foreign terrorists that might be Muslim, and we stand against domestic terrorists.

And we cannot have this conflation and this amplification of bigotry. We are partners in national security. And we call on the administration to view us as partners in national security, and that we condemn terrorism and that, if you look at — American Muslims are more peaceful than they are trying to portray.

Judy Woodruff:

And, Jonathan Greenblatt, what is — and I think both of you are getting at this — what is the danger, what is the risk when the president himself is putting out a message like this one?

Jonathan Greenblatt:

Well, there's great risk to it.

I mean, to build on what Rizwan was saying, we already have seen Muslims not just feel victimized. The data bears this out. The hate crimes report from the FBI released just a few weeks ago showed a 19 percent increase on hate crimes against Muslims.

These are attacks against these people because of their faith. So there is not just a perceived threat. There is a real threat to Muslim Americans that all of us need to take seriously.

And just imagine for a moment if the president, instead of using his bully pulpit to attack the most vulnerable, defended them. Imagine if the president used his Twitter feed not to retweet racists, but to call them out for their intolerance. Imagine if he were uniting our country, rather than dividing it.

That's what I think we would like to see from the Oval Office. That's what all Americans, whether you're Muslim, or Jewish or of any faith, deserve from our president.

Judy Woodruff:

Mr. Jaka, if you could speak to President Trump right now, what would you want the say to him about this?

Rizwan Jaka:

I would say, Mr. President, we are all Americans.

And he at one time said he wanted to represent all Americans and wanted to bring us together. We all bleed red. We all bleed red, white and blue. We are all Americans.

And Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Baha'i, Zoroastrian, people of no faith, we are all in it together. Let's work together to unite people. Let's stand against all bigotry, all hate, all extremism, and we can really make things go forward.

And I would ask him, if he wants to retweet something, he can retweet that we're having a Muslim-Jewish summit this weekend. We're having interfaith events with evangelical Christians and Muslims and Jewish community members, that we're working together in partnership for love, respect, and harmony, and have a video he can tweet about American Muslims that have given the ultimate sacrifice serving in the U.S. military.

Judy Woodruff:

And, Jonathan Greenblatt, what would you add? What would you say to the president, especially since the White House keeps saying he's so concerned about these threats coming to our country?

Jonathan Greenblatt:

I would say to the president, Mr. President, please use the Oval Office to elevate America, rather than diminishing us.

Please use your pedestal and your bully pulpit to speak to all Americans, again, of all faiths, of all national origins, of all backgrounds. You have a unique opportunity. And you're no longer citizen Trump. As President Trump, you owe it to the American people to be true to the values upon which this country was based, pluralism, equality and the dignity of all Americans.

Judy Woodruff:

Jonathan Greenblatt of the Anti-Defamation League and Rizwan Jaka of the Adams Center here in Virginia, thank you both.

Rizwan Jaka:

Thank you.

Jonathan Greenblatt:

Thank you.

Rizwan Jaka:

May peace be with you.