An anti-poverty civil rights group wants Donald Trump to rescind his appointment of Breitbart chief Steve Bannon as chief strategist to the new administration.
The Southern Poverty Law Center issued a statement Monday saying Bannon has no business working in the White House. The group called Breitbart’s work a massive platform for the alt-right and white supremacy.
“Under Bannon, Breitbart published a call to ‘hoist [the Confederate flag] high and fly it with pride’ only two weeks after the Charleston massacre when the country was still reeling from the horrors of the murders,” the group wrote. “Under Bannon, Breitbart published an extremist anti-Muslim tract where the author wrote that ‘rape culture’ is ‘integral’ to Islam. Worse perhaps, Bannon personally insinuated that African Americans are ‘naturally aggressive and violent.'”
Trump announced Sunday Bannon would be a co-equal with Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus in the White House. Priebus will serve as chief of staff, typically the highest official among administrative staff, while Bannon will work as chief strategist and senior adviser.
Bannon’s appointment to Trump’s inner circle has been met with outrage from Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid who issued a scathing statement Sunday night. Bannon has been called a white supremacist, an anti-Semite and an anti-feminist during the period since he was appointed.
The Southern Poverty Law Center said if Trump truly wants to adhere to his pledge to be a president for all Americans, Bannon must go.
“Mr. Trump, during your victory speech, you pledged to be a president for ‘all Americans’ and to ;bind the wounds of division’ in our country,” the statement read. “If you mean what you say, you must rescind your appointment of Bannon.”
