The election of Donald Trump as the next President of the United States has resulted in an outpouring of racially charged attacks. The latest out of Chicago has the local community in an uproar.
A group of three Black teens and one adult have been arrested and charged with hate crimes in connection with the kidnapping and torture of a Chicago man, who is believed to suffer from mental disabilities. The group first shared video of the disturbing incident during a Facebook Live session on Tuesday and it later went viral after being uploaded to YouTube. In the video footage, the victim is seen gagged, bound and bleeding from a gash in his head as the teens taunt him with racial slurs. At various points in the video, suspects can be heard screaming, “F*** Donald Trump!” and “F*** White people!” as the man sits in a corner moaning through the gag in his mouth. The 18-year-old victim was also reportedly made to drink water from a toilet bowl at some point during the attack, that is believed to have lasted for two days.
According to NBC News, police later found the victim walking through a Chicago neighborhood while appearing “disoriented” following the incident. He was taken to a local hospital and treated for his injuries sustained during the attack. Chicago PD Superintendent Eddie Johnson described the video as a “brutal act.”
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“It’s sickening,” Johnson told reporters during a press conference on Wednesday evening. “It makes you wonder what would make individuals treat somebody like that. I’ve been a cop for 28 years and seen things that you shouldn’t see in a lifetime, but it still amazes me that you see things that you shouldn’t.”
The four suspects involved range from ages 18-24 and also face additional charges including aggravated unlawful restraint, burglary, and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.
While many on social media are attempting to encourage completely fabricated speculation that Black Lives Matter is somehow to blame for the actions of those involved in the incident, it turns out they have no affiliation to the organization whatsoever, nor did they ever imply otherwise at any point in the video.
The truth of the matter––which right-wing enthusiasts have tried to avoid admitting at all costs––is that Donald Trump’s decision to run a presidential campaign that normalized hatred for people of color under the guise of a political strategy is ultimately what has fueled this latest wave of racist, prejudice rhetoric plaguing the country.