After a CNN report asserting that the United States State Department is racist under the administration of President Donald Trump, spokesperson Heather Nauert ripped into the allegation, calling it disgusting and false.
The assertion that @StateDept is “racist” is disgusting and false—a brazen attempt to create division for domestic political gain. State is among the most diverse of government agencies, employing a workforce from every part of America and every region of the globe.
— Heather Nauert (@statedeptspox) September 16, 2018
.@StateDept hires and empowers those who represent diversity of race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, sexual orientation and opinion to advance US Foreign Policy.
— Heather Nauert (@statedeptspox) September 16, 2018
At issue are several comments by deputy assistant for refugees and migration Andrew Veprek pushing back against the need to condemn every form of hate speech, especially for terms such as populism and nationalism:
“The drafters say ‘populism and nationalism’ as if these are dirty words,” Veprek wrote of one document. “There are millions of Americans who likely would describe themselves as adhering to these concepts. (Maybe even the President.) So are we looking to here condemn our fellow-citizens, those who pay our salaries?”
Further, Veprek took issue with language in a UN Human Rights Council resolution, which said national leaders have a duty to condemn hate speech. Veprek insisted that “‘duty to condemn’ goes too far. Our public figures can’t be obliged to police every intolerant thought out their (sic) at the risk of being condemned for intolerance themselves.”
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In the age of Donald Trump, writes @davidalove, "the US government has a racism issue, and it is a dangerous problem with international implications." https://t.co/QPFpHzsPiV
— CNN Opinion (@CNNOpinion) September 16, 2018
An FYI to CNN, the silence is no longer “deafening” from the department, and it is not racist.
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