Donald Trump to hold rallies 'maybe next week', says 'big demand' amid protests

US President Donald Trump has indicated on June 9 that he will resume holding rallies for his reelection campaign in November 2020 elections “maybe next week”. Retweeting a post by a reporter of an international media outlet who shared images from the Black Lives Matter protests in the country, Trump said there is “big demand” for him to hold gatherings. The post which was reshared by the US President cited the recent demonstrations to say that “mass gatherings are now  “okay” amid the coronavirus outbreak and that both Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden should start hosting rallies again. 

It has been over two weeks since demonstrations against racial discrimination rocked the entire country after the death of 46-year-old African American George Floyd in police custody. People have flooded the streets of major cities from sea to sea, some even defying the guidelines of social distancing amid COVID-19 pandemic. The gathering of tens of thousands of people had initially sparked fears of a surge in COVID-19 cases for the state governments. Since some of them even went violent, the administrations either deployed curfews or called on National Guard to control the protests.

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‘Done more for the black community’

Even though the 45th US President has repeatedly voiced his concern over the rise in violence and the need for “law and order” in the country, he has not addressed the issue of racism in America head-on. Arguing that a strong economy would combat any injustices, Trump has restated that he has “done more for the black community than any president since Abraham Lincoln. However, since there has not been a substantial conversation about racial discrimination by the White House, a fresh wave of criticism against Trump has begun.

The Democrat Mayor of Atlanta Keisha Lance Bottoms has reportedly said that the uneven address of racism and violence by some protesters has created a void of an important national conversation about racism.

“I think we have to have the conversation with him being absent,” Bottoms said. “Having a conversation with him would be like having a conversation with a madman. It would mean nothing.”

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(With agency inputs)