Bubba Wallace released a statement Monday in response to President Trump, who said earlier that day that Wallace, NASCAR’s only full-time black driver, should apologize after a knot was discovered at his garage stall on a race track. racing in Alabama. In a statement addressed to “the next generation and the little ones who are following in my footsteps,” wrote Wallace, “… always deal with the hatred that is thrown at you with LOVE! … Even when it is HATE of POTUS [president of the United States]”
The previous Monday, Trump referred to the rope incident as a “hoax” and questioned whether Wallace had “apologized to all those great NASCAR drivers and officers who came to his aid, stood by him and were willing to sacrifice all for him, only to find out that it was all just another HOAX? After the slipknot was discovered and the race was postponed due to weather, the other drivers and crew members helped push Wallace’s car during pre-race activities the next day as a sign of support.
“That Flag decision has caused the lowest ratings EVER!” Trump tweeted, referring to NASCAR decision ban the confederate flag on racing.
In response, Wallace addressed his young admirers, saying, “There will always be people who will give it a try. See if they can knock it off its pedestal. I encourage you to hold your head up and walk proudly on the path you have chosen. Never Don’t anyone tell you you can’t do something! “
Then he offered more advice, writing: “… always deal with the hate that is thrown at you with LOVE! Love for hate every day. Love should come naturally, since people are TAUGHT to hate.”
One of Wallace’s crew members discovered that the team’s garage door pull rope was tied to a tie prior to a race last month. Following its discovery, which occurred in the context of protests nationwide against police brutality and racial injustice, the FBI and NASCAR open investigations in the incident.
Wallace initially called the exhibition a “despicable act of racism and hatred,” while NASCAR said he was “angry and outraged” and came to his defense, and said in a statement that the organization praised “his courage and leadership” for speaking. .
“NASCAR continues to be steadfast with Bubba, our competitors and all who make our sport welcoming and inclusive to all racing fans,” said the racing company.
The FBI concluded The rope had been in the garage position since October 2019, and therefore could not have been directed at Wallace. As a result, they determined that no crime had been committed. Both the office and NASCAR described the rope as a loop.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany was pressured numerous times during Monday’s White House press conference to explain why Trump believes Wallace should apologize, especially since he was one of his crew members, not the driver, who found the rope at the garage stand. Wallace was also not the person who reported him.
“The FBI, as I pointed out, concluded that this was not a hate crime, and he believes it would go a long way if Bubba appeared and recognized him as well,” McEnany said.
But immediately after the FBI revealed its findings, Wallace released a statement saying he was “relieved” that the investigation “revealed that this was not what we feared it was” and thanked NASCAR and the FBI for taking the episode seriously. .
NASCAR President Steve Phelps also rejected the notion that the discovery was part of a “hoax”, saying Wallace and his team “had nothing to do with this.”
Still, McEnany declined to elaborate on Trump’s position, instead saying the president noted the press’s “rush to judge” that a hate crime had been committed. He also said the president “was not passing judgment one way or another” on NASCAR’s ban on displaying the Confederate flag.
“The goal of the tweet was to notice the incident, the alleged hate crime that was not actually a hate crime,” he said. “In the end, the flag ban was mentioned in the broader context of the fact that it rejects this notion that some NASCAR men and women who attend these sporting events were racist.”
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