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White House adviser Jared Kushner--whose family is worth an estimated $1.8 billion--is seen here with his wife Ivanka Trump at a New York gala in 2015. (Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images)
Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner--who like his boss and father-in-law President Donald Trump is a product of his family's fortune--was mercilessly lambasted on social media on Monday after he mocked Black Lives Matter activists and suggested that many Black people don't want to be successful.
"Jared Kushner is the face of white privilege and nepotism. He doesn't want to change our racist, broken system because he benefits from it."
--Rep. Barbara Lee
Appearing on the Fox News morning show "Fox & Friends," Kushner--some of whose $1.8 billion family fortune was amassed off the misfortune and suffering of Black people--and the hosts discussed economic issues facing the Black community. Racism was not mentioned. Kushner did touch upon the subject, albeit in a decidedly derisive fashion. After mentioning George Floyd, the unarmed Black man killed in May by Minneapolis police, Kushner accused people who expressed support for Black lives of "virtue signaling."
"They'd go on Instagram and cry or they would put a slogan on their jersey or write something on a basketball court," he said. "And quite frankly, that was doing more to polarize the country than it was to bring people forward."
While admitting that Black Americans overwhelmingly vote for Democrats, Kushner asserted that Trump's "Platinum Plan"--which seeks to help Black people through capitalism-based solutions without acknowlegding the existence of racism as an obstacle to opportunity--and other policies "can help people break out of the problems that they're complaining about, but he can't help them be successful more than they want to be successful."
The Democratic National Committee released a statement blasting Kushner for demeaning racial justice protests as mere "complaining."
"This dismissive approach to the issues that Black voters care about is indicative of Trump's callousness and disregard for the lives of Black people," the statement said.
Reaction to Kushner's remarks came fast and fierce on social media:
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner--who like his boss and father-in-law President Donald Trump is a product of his family's fortune--was mercilessly lambasted on social media on Monday after he mocked Black Lives Matter activists and suggested that many Black people don't want to be successful.
"Jared Kushner is the face of white privilege and nepotism. He doesn't want to change our racist, broken system because he benefits from it."
--Rep. Barbara Lee
Appearing on the Fox News morning show "Fox & Friends," Kushner--some of whose $1.8 billion family fortune was amassed off the misfortune and suffering of Black people--and the hosts discussed economic issues facing the Black community. Racism was not mentioned. Kushner did touch upon the subject, albeit in a decidedly derisive fashion. After mentioning George Floyd, the unarmed Black man killed in May by Minneapolis police, Kushner accused people who expressed support for Black lives of "virtue signaling."
"They'd go on Instagram and cry or they would put a slogan on their jersey or write something on a basketball court," he said. "And quite frankly, that was doing more to polarize the country than it was to bring people forward."
While admitting that Black Americans overwhelmingly vote for Democrats, Kushner asserted that Trump's "Platinum Plan"--which seeks to help Black people through capitalism-based solutions without acknowlegding the existence of racism as an obstacle to opportunity--and other policies "can help people break out of the problems that they're complaining about, but he can't help them be successful more than they want to be successful."
The Democratic National Committee released a statement blasting Kushner for demeaning racial justice protests as mere "complaining."
"This dismissive approach to the issues that Black voters care about is indicative of Trump's callousness and disregard for the lives of Black people," the statement said.
Reaction to Kushner's remarks came fast and fierce on social media:
Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner--who like his boss and father-in-law President Donald Trump is a product of his family's fortune--was mercilessly lambasted on social media on Monday after he mocked Black Lives Matter activists and suggested that many Black people don't want to be successful.
"Jared Kushner is the face of white privilege and nepotism. He doesn't want to change our racist, broken system because he benefits from it."
--Rep. Barbara Lee
Appearing on the Fox News morning show "Fox & Friends," Kushner--some of whose $1.8 billion family fortune was amassed off the misfortune and suffering of Black people--and the hosts discussed economic issues facing the Black community. Racism was not mentioned. Kushner did touch upon the subject, albeit in a decidedly derisive fashion. After mentioning George Floyd, the unarmed Black man killed in May by Minneapolis police, Kushner accused people who expressed support for Black lives of "virtue signaling."
"They'd go on Instagram and cry or they would put a slogan on their jersey or write something on a basketball court," he said. "And quite frankly, that was doing more to polarize the country than it was to bring people forward."
While admitting that Black Americans overwhelmingly vote for Democrats, Kushner asserted that Trump's "Platinum Plan"--which seeks to help Black people through capitalism-based solutions without acknowlegding the existence of racism as an obstacle to opportunity--and other policies "can help people break out of the problems that they're complaining about, but he can't help them be successful more than they want to be successful."
The Democratic National Committee released a statement blasting Kushner for demeaning racial justice protests as mere "complaining."
"This dismissive approach to the issues that Black voters care about is indicative of Trump's callousness and disregard for the lives of Black people," the statement said.
Reaction to Kushner's remarks came fast and fierce on social media: