Harris: Trump throwing white supremacists a ‘welcome home party’ with Tulsa rally

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) torched President Trump on Thursday over the president’s plan to hold a campaign rally in Tulsa, Okla., on Juneteenth.

In a tweet, Harris linked to a Los Angeles Times story that noted that Trump’s June 19 rally would take place in a city that was the site of a racist riot and massacre in 1921.

“This isn’t just a wink to white supremacists—he’s throwing them a welcome home party,” the senator tweeted.

This isn’t just a wink to white supremacists—he’s throwing them a welcome home party. https://t.co/lUXpnUoFQU

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 11, 2020

The 1921 massacre in Tulsa is considered one of the worst instances of racial violence in U.S. history. Mobs of white residents attacked the city’s black community, leaving more than two dozen African American residents dead and hundreds more injured. Several blocks of black-owned businesses known as “Black Wall Street” were completely destroyed.

Katrina Pierson, spokeswoman for the Trump campaign, told The Hill in an emailed statement that the campaign recognized the importance of Juneteenth, which marks the day in 1865 in which the Emancipation Proclamation was read to a group of enslaved black Americans in Texas, the final state where emancipation was announced.

“As the party of Lincoln, Republicans are proud of the history of Juneteenth, which is the anniversary of the last reading of the Emancipation Proclamation. President Trump has built a record of success for Black Americans, including unprecedented low unemployment prior to the global pandemic, all-time high funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and criminal justice reform,” she said.

“[Former Vice President] Joe Biden (D) spent last Juneteenth raising money at a private fundraiser and defending comments he made celebrating his work with segregationist senators,” Pierson continued.

Harris previously pursued a bid for the Democratic nomination before dropping out of the presidential primary late last year. She has in recent weeks been considered a top potential pick to serve as the running mate alongside Biden, the party’s presumptive nominee.