“Awakening, multiculturalism, all the isms – this is not who America is. It distorts our glorious foundation and what this country is about. Our enemies ignite this division because they know they are making us weaker,” he said on Tuesday. writing. .
The State Secretary’s statement that “multiculturalism” is not part of the American ethos was quickly denounced as a shocking and racist insult to the workforce he leads, the agency he represents, and the values it is intended to serve. .
“Unconsciously,” said one diplomat.
Another diplomat asks how it is supposed to make diplomats of color, or those of non-Christian backgrounds, feel.
“We need to do better to propose it and not reject it,” he said.
“It is really an unfortunate and disturbing statement for the Secretary of State to deliver at a time when the task ahead for this country is to bring together all the different sectors of our country and become the ‘United States’ again. , “said retired Amb. Charles Ray, who served 30 years in the foreign service and 20 in the U.S. Army. “It also sends a worrying message to countries struggling with inter-ethnic strife and dictators who exploit the ethnic and cultural divisions in their societies.”
“He positions himself very clearly”
Political strategists view Pompeo’s tweet as part of a push in his last days to call on the GOP’s Trump faction, with the outgoing top US diplomat with a very specific group of Republicans still running for President Donald Trump supports his anti-immigrant policies. and his attacks on the so-called “politically correct.”
“He’s very clearly positioning himself as an heir to the Trump base. It’s a message that is exactly in line with what the president said,” said GOP strategist Douglas Heye. “When I saw this tweet, I thought a lot of us were hoping this government would have stood for conservatism, but it’s all thrown out the window in favor of all the things Trump has done.”
The foreign ministry did not respond when asked for an explanation of the tweet.
Pompeo maintained close ties with Trump during a term damaged by racist and anti-democratic actions and rhetoric. From Charlottesville to the “Muslim ban” to the siege of the Capitol, where rioters displayed white supremacist and anti-Semitic images, Pompeo never accused the president of inciting the flames of dangerous divisions. Pompeo himself condemned the January 6 uprising itself in a series of tweets, but did not acknowledge the links between protesters’ violent actions and Trump’s incitement.
He repeatedly attacked The 1619 Project, a Pulitzer Prize-winning initiative by The New York Times Magazine aimed at reformulating the country’s history through the effects of slavery and the contributions of black Americans through our national narrative. ”
Nikole Hannah-Jones, creator of The 1619 Project, said Pompeo’s tweet proved the project’s thesis.
‘His silence is deafening’
But on the underlying issue that motivates the protests, Pompeo has largely remained silent. Although he saw the murder of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, as an abomination, he initially rejected the proposals of his staff to address the department on racial equality in the US or messages of support and empathy to the department sent. write big.
