Nigel Hastilow looks into the great divide of the DisUnited States
The trouble with America is that, despite all the glossy Hollywood hype and silicon-valley technology, it’s still in many ways a Third World country.
Race riots, white terrorism, prejudiced policemen and a President seems to be running an entirely dysfunctional White House are all part of the same disunited state of the place.
Donald Trump’s initial response to the killing of 32-year-old Heather Heyer in Charlottesville, Virginia, was to condemn ‘hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides. On many sides.’
He failed to condemn the white supremacists, racists and neo-Nazis whose protest led to riots and, ultimately, to a Dodge Challenger car being deliberately driven into a crowd of anti-fascist demonstrators killing Ms Heyer and injuring 19 others.
It was only two days later – after almost universal condemnation of his ambivalent response to the tragedy – that he succumbed to pressure.
‘Racism is evil,’ he eventually forced himself to declare, ‘And those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs, including the KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and other hate groups that are repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans.’
This came too late. Foreign leaders including Theresa May and Germany’s Angela Merkel had already condemned white racists and Mr Trump’s own Republican Party leaders were aghast at his original comments.
Unfortunately Mr Trump relied on extremist groups to help him into the White House in the first place so he didn’t want to upset his friends on the American right.
And when he failed to condemn them outright from the outset, several of these groups expressed their gratitude.
