Bernice King spoke out on Friday against President Donald Trump referring to Haiti and African nations as “shithole countries.”
“We’ve heard so many things from him via Twitter and otherwise that have been extremely troubling to our humanity,” the activist and daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King said via a Facebook live video.
Bernice King said that she hopes that on Monday’s national holiday, Trump will attempt to “suspend any effort at tweeting something negative or insulting.”
She said she hoped “that he will use his Twitter account on the King holiday to really respect the spirit, the heart and legacy of Dr. King by tweeting positive and uplifting messages.”
Her remarks followed Trump’s signing of a a proclamation honoring Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and work. During the signing, the president praised the civil rights leader’s “faith and love for humanity” while telling Americans “no matter what the color of our skin or the place of our birth, we are all created equal by God.”
A day prior, Trump had asked lawmakers during an Oval Office meeting why immigrants were coming from “shithole countries” instead of what he views as more desirable places, like Norway, according to a report from The Washington Post.
Bernice King spoke out on Twitter in response to the report.
“I’m not surprised when I hear President Trump has said something else insulting [racist, bigoted, hateful] about a group of people or a nation of people,” she wrote. “I’m more troubled by the silence from people who are supposed to be men and women of righteousness.”
Bernice King echoed these sentiments during her Facebook live video.
“My dad said, in the end we will not remember the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends,” she said. “And this is not the time for silence of those who are truly friends of what is right.”