Latino journalists react to attack on former president Trump
Former president Donald Trump was injured in an apparent shooting during a Trump campaign event in Butler, Penn., on Saturday afternoon.
In the moments that followed, Latino journalists attending the 40th annual National Association of Hispanic Journalists conference in California scrambled to break the news for their respective news organizations.
The Latino Reporter captured some of their reactions from the Lowes Hollywood Hotel:
John Quiñones, ABC News
“I was watching it live and suddenly I see him go down and grab his ear … it was frightening. I mean, when I see him go down and then for a moment you don’t know what happened, but when you see him come up and grab his ear, you could tell he was just grazed, thankfully. It’s horrible. I worry that this might lead to even an angrier reaction somewhere else.”
Rafael Collazo, Executive Director of UnidosUS Action Fund
“It’s obviously very unfortunate. But this is what we’ve been saying in the Latino community and people of color for quite some time, rhetoric matters, words matter. So when the right wing and Trump say vitriolic things, threatening things demonize people, dehumanize people like they do with Latino community and particularly immigrants, then people get inspired to do things like this. And so it’s very important that all of us stop demonizing each other, that all of us stop the the violent and un-Democratic rhetoric. I hope everyone is safe, including Donald Trump. But hopefully out of this incident, we can change the way we’re talking about politics.”
Lilian Hernández Caraballo, Central Florida Public Media
“Yeah, I think it’s going to be a very challenging election to cover. The closer it gets to election time newsrooms are really going to need all hands on deck. We’re going to be very busy, and it’s going to take a lot of objectivity and a lot of news judgment and a lot of just compassion — even to have toward voters and candidates and just the situation in general — so that we can stay objective, so we can stay fair and accurate and neutral, and just focus on the things that matter. And why these events matter, and the impact they’re going to have, and keep it off the politics and the chisme.”
Here is what we know about the incident so far:
Trump shared a message via social media moments after he was rushed from the rally stating that he is okay and is getting treated at a medical center.
The Associated Press reported that the person believed to be the gunman and a rally attendee died, citing the district attorney for Butler County, where Trump’s rally took place.
The crowd cheered when they saw Trump get, after he ducked behind the podium when several loud noises popped off. His motorcade immediately left the scene of the really in Pennsylvania.
Police began vacating the fairgrounds after the incident. Trump was talking about border crossings when he was interrupted by apparent gunshots.
President Joe Biden gave remarks on Trump’s recent assassination attempt from the White House’s emergency briefing room in Rehoboth Beach, Del.
“I’m grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well,” Biden said. “I’m praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information. Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite to condemn it.”
An update from Andrew Sherry, the NAHJ Executive Director of Communications:
The National Association of Hispanic Journalists is scheduled to host its annual Hall of Fame Gala on Saturday afternoon, during the convention in Hollywood.
NAHJ posted this statement on social media in reaction to the alleged assassination attempt:
“NAHJ is appalled by the violence that occurred today at a political rally in Pennsylvania. America is a democracy and violence has absolutely no place in politics. As we wait to learn details, our thoughts and prayers are with anyone injured or possibly killed in the incident.”
In a separate statement Sherry shared, “NAHJ postponed its board meeting scheduled for Sunday due to the Trump rally incident, as at least one and potentially other board members were called back to their jobs.”
Andrés I. Jové Rodríguez is a recent graduate from the University of Puerto Rico in Arecibo (UPRA). He graduated with a B.A. in Tele-Radio Communications with emphasis on News, and Production and Direction. Jové Rodríguez covers politics, economics, and environment issues. He aspires to pursue a career as a multimedia journalist. Reach him at andres.jove [at] upr [dot] edu or on LinkedIn.
Sofia Mireles-Gonzalez is a fourth-year student at Michigan State University majoring in Journalism with a concentration in Broadcasting. She is interested in covering topics related to immigration and aims to become a bilingual immigration reporter in the future. Reach her at mireles.sofia14 [at] gmail [dot] com or on LinkedIn.
