Music Mogul Russell Simmons lead thousands at the I Am A Muslim Too Rally in New York and he has a thing or two to thank his ex-friend Donald Trump for.
Donald Trump has been under immense heat since he has taken his oath as the president of the United States. His inauguration has been colored with various protests all around the world, his executive orders have been met with nationwide protests and strikes, even his statements and tweets incite great disdain and disapproval from countries and world leaders.
With a lot of hate and disapproval crashing into Donald Trump, thanks to his proven false statements and rage-inciting policies , it’s not surprising that he would make hoards of enemies. But this time around, an anti-Trump rally in New York has Donald Trump’s ex-friend thanking the president instead.
Donald Trump’s most recent Muslim ban has already incited many a protest. But today’s demonstration against the Trump administration’s Muslim Ban is a bit different from the rest, and is hosted and organized by music mogul Russell Simmons, alongside Imam Shamsi Ali and Rabbi Marc Schneier, Rolling Stone reports.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQs4N0hB9IF/
Instead of anger and hate, today’s “I Am A Muslim Too” rally happening at the New York Times Square takes on a more positive attack to the Muslim ban policy and seeks to highlight beauty and unity in what Simmons calls a “lovefest.” In fact, instead of speaking out against his ex-friend Donald Trump, Russell Simmons went on to thank the president for uniting the people of America:
“We are here today to show middle America our beautiful signs and, through our beautiful actions and intention, that they have been misled. We are here unified because of Donald Trump. We want to thank him for bringing us together.”
Around 10,000 Muslims and supporters are expected to join the “I Am A Muslim Too” Rally today and true to its vision, people of different ethnicity, culture, and faith are already flocking Times Square to join in the peaceful rally.
“ @iamamuslimtoo :. @UncleRUSH ‘s opening remarks at #IAmAMuslimToo pic.twitter.com/juCftOnHvq ”
— Dipika (@_DipikaR) February 19, 2017
Simmons added the following, emphasizing how the rally aims to “fight hatred with love” and “fight bigotry with unity.”
“We have to acknowledge there’s a change in our country. We have been fighting Islamophobia for many years, but there is a shift towards more hate crimes and more hate. But at the same time, we have to recognize there’s also an acknowledgement of that hate and a connectivity that it brings, and a partnership and unity that it brings, so we can have this lovefest today.”
Earlier this week, Russell Simmons already authored an article for Global Citizen to speak out against Trump’s infamous Muslim ban and call the people to join him in the “I Am A Muslim Too” rally.
“We the people declare Trump’s ban as morally, politically, economically, and ethically unconstitutional. Trump did not win the popular vote and does not represent the voice of the people. We have taken to the streets in record numbers to remind him of this every day of his presidency—swaying many of our senators, mayors, assembly members, and members of Congress to join the resistance from within.
“As a yogi, I feel and believe all Americans should feel personally threatened by Trump’s choices to target Muslims. Targeting any one of us is in fact targeting all of us.
“The people united cannot be divided.”
Russell Simmons’ non-violent anti-Trump stance is understandable since Russell Simmons was once a close friend to Donald Trump. In a previous report by the Inquisitr , Russell Simmons revealed that he was a very good friend to Trump, that, in fact, Trump wrote the foreword to Simmons’ first two books.
Russell Simmons renounces friendship with Donald Trump https://t.co/XfYFKNKfp2 pic.twitter.com/3XAZH0LuGR
— startupcrunch (@startupcrunch) February 3, 2017
Trump’s and Simmons’ friendship goes way back to the time that Trump was still on his first date with now First Lady Melania, Fox News reported. However, this long-standing friendship between the two has encountered an impasse when Trump launched his White House bid, resulting to Simmons dropping not-so-friendly statements against his friend—particularly, a comment about preferring a certain celebrity to be the president of the U.S. instead of Trump.
“We haven’t been friends since the day he announced and I said, ‘I’d rather Kim Kardashian be President’ so he called the office and that was the end of our friendship.”
As of the moment, the “I Am A Muslim Too” rally headed by Russell Simmons continues to flood Times Square and dominate social media.
Massive crowds at the #IAmAMuslimToo rally in NYC. The unity among the people is powerful and we will be resilient. Resist! pic.twitter.com/m74jcyPGAt
— Impeach Donald Trump (@Impeach_D_Trump) February 19, 2017
Beautiful day to be a part of the resistance #IAmAMuslimToo pic.twitter.com/TwkOFtZaTC
— John Devanney (@johndevanney) February 19, 2017
RT @GraceLisaScott @Impeach_D_Trump LOVE IT when my city is on the RIGHT side of history! #ilovenewyork #iamamuslimtoo #SundayMorning pic.twitter.com/AwZmOvUGQm
— BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@mmpadellan) February 19, 2017
. @SusanSarandon and @lsarsour at the #IAmAMuslimToo rally in Times Square. Solidarity! #HeretoStay #NoBanNoWall #SundayMorning pic.twitter.com/6rsCuoxQhI
— RoseAnn DeMoro (@RoseAnnDeMoro) February 19, 2017
[Featured image by Rainmaker Photo/MediaPunch/IPX]