Mayor of West Hollywood tells Donald Trump: You aren’t welcome in our city
The Mayor of West Hollywood has warned Presidential hopeful Donald Trump that he is “not welcome” to campaign there.
The city, which has one of the highest proportions of LGBT residents in the US, will come into play ahead of June’s California primary, with polling showing that Trump holds a lead across the state.
California is shaping up to be decisive in the Presidential race, with a mammoth delegate count and close polling in both the Republican and Democratic contests.
But West Hollywood Mayor Lindsey Horvath has warned Donald Trump to stay away – citing his offensive comments on a number of issues.
In a letter to Mr Trump, Mayor Horvath wrote: “With the primary making its way to California, as West Hollywood’s Mayor, I want to make very clear that your campaign of violence and intimidation is not welcome in our City.”
She added: “The people of West Hollywood have seen the devastation and destruction that hatred and hate speech can bring.
“We are home to Jewish immigrants who escaped Nazi occupation in Soviet Russia, to LGBTQ people of all ages including survivors of the AIDS crisis, and to many other diverse constituencies, of which we are most proud.
“We know firsthand how charged language can incite dangerous activity that puts our residents and neighborhoods at risk – and at great cost.
“While we must always make room for free speech and reasonable – even passionate – debate, your reckless rhetoric is wrong at every level.”
In an op-ed for the Advocate, she explained: “I firmly believe it is the responsibility of those of us in leadership to use our words and actions wisely.
“That is why I took the opportunity to express how deeply disturbed I am by the Trump presidential campaign and to call out their destructive tactics.
“The campaign has gone beyond its right to express a political point of view or policy differences, which we all have to greater or lesser degrees.
“The hate speech and implicit calls to violence coming from Trump and his campaign are beyond the pale and have no place in any community in our country.”
She added: “From mocking people living with disabilities to classifying entire ethnicities as violent criminals to persecuting specific religious communities, Trump has pursued headlines in this election season with reckless abandon.
“The policy positions he has taken — opposing marriage equality, reproductive freedom, and a pathway to citizenship, to name a few — violate basic human rights.
“Furthermore, his encouragement and defense of acts of violence at recent campaign events is conduct unbecoming of any decent American, especially someone seeking the highest elected office in our country.”
The Mayor continued: “With the primary making its way to California, I wrote to the mayors of the other 87 cities in Los Angeles County, which has seen its share of violent hatred.”
