Twitter erupted in a rage after reports that Donald Trump said the murdered George Floyd would be “happy” about good US jobs figures. It turned out the president wasn’t talking about jobs figures when he made the comment at all.
During remarks at the White House on Friday, Trump took time to boast about figures showing unemployment had fallen to 13.3 percent with 2.5 million jobs added in May, as the economy begins to rebound following the Covid-19 lockdown.
Many reporters on Twitter were then quick to share shortened versions of a clip in which Trump said Floyd was hopefully “looking down right now and saying this is a great thing that’s happening for our country” — allegedly referring to falling unemployment.
“It’s a great day for [George] and a great day for everybody,” Trump continues in the clip.
Trump was instantly blasted for the “tone deaf” and “cruel” remarks by many on Twitter given that Floyd was brutally killed by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin who held him down for almost nine minutes as he struggled to breathe.
The US president was also accused of “denigrating the memory” of Floyd and showing an “utter lack of sympathy” for millions of Americans still struggling economically.
It turns out, however, that the clip was taken wildly out of context and that Trump didn’t actually make the comment while speaking about jobs figures at all. He made it during a part of his speech about the need for “equal justice under the law.”
The full clip shows Trump saying that “every American” should receive equal treatment “in every encounter with law enforcement” regardless of race, color, gender or creed. It is at that point that he says Floyd would be looking down and saying that is a “great day” for the country.
TRUMP: “Equal Justice under the law must mean that every American receives equal treatment in every encounter with law enforcement regardless of race, color, gender, or creed..” pic.twitter.com/Q7magBCVZ6
While not exactly the most sensitive comment, coming less than 24 hours after Floyd’s memorial service, it wasn’t quite as ludicrous a moment as blue-checked Twitter made it seem.
It wasn’t only Twitter where the comments were misreported, however. News outlets from Sky News to the Guardian, to Bloomberg, Newsweek, Politico and the New York Daily News also tweeted the news with the incorrect context.
And now you have countless news sites spreading this falsehood…
Do members of the press really not realize how much this stuff kills their credibility? pic.twitter.com/wlKobZe2nb
One popular conservative tweeter highlighted the fact that the clip had been taken out of context, asking: “How does anyone justify that type of dishonesty?” by reporters.
Floyd’s killing has sparked massive protests against police brutality across the US and internationally. While some of the protests have turned violent, US police have also been filmed brutally beating and using tear gas and rubber bullets on peaceful protesters.
