In the United States of America, we abide by the first amendment which *allegedly protects everyone’s right to freedom of speech among other unalienable rights, however many people continue to be persecuted for their opinions anyway. Krystal Lake, 22, for example, was photographed wearing a hat which read “America Was Never Great” as she entered her job at a Home Depot on Forest Avenue in Staten Island.
The hat is clearly in disagreement with Donald Trump’s slogan “Make America Great Again” but for whatever reason, Lake is receiving death threats for essentially expressing how she feels without posing any threats. Many veterans took offense to the hat and her job is not defending her. However, given the intensity of these reactions, do they demonstrate that the hat has made a valid argument?
The NY Times:
“Ms. Lake said she had gotten tired of hearing Mr. Trump’s slogan from his supporters and thought America “was never great.” She said that Mr. Trump’s slogan did not make room for bigger aspirations beyond the past and that he was dismissive of groups that did not fit his ideal demographic.”
Lake wore the hat on a Sunday and by Wednesday, her social media was flooded with death threats and a slew of slurs. “They were actually threatening to kill me over a hat,” she said on Thursday. “I couldn’t believe it. I was calling my best friend and I was like, ‘How is this happening? It’s just a hat.” The soon-to-be graduate of the College of Staten Island says she didn’t take the threats too seriously, because many of them were just trolls.
She’s expecting to be fired, but let’s hope that Home Depot doesn’t fire a college student over this. That’s petty.
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Source: http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/05/21/nyregion/trump-hat-death-threats.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur&_r=0&referer=https://t.co/dNgYgRsWQk
