Puerto Rican stars decry 'willful ignorance' at Trump MSG rally
A trifecta of Puerto Rican superstars combined forces in a new opinion piece for the New York Times to condemn the “willful ignorance” of former President Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
Award-winning Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin, singer-songwriter Lin-Manuel Miranda and actress and singer Rita Moreno wrote about the importance of Puerto Rican history and influence in American culture.
“Like us or not — and it’s obvious that some people really don’t like us — the threads of Puerto Rican culture are woven into our shared American story,” they wrote. “That story speaks loudly and proudly to tens of millions of Americans.”
The piece comes in response to comedian Tony Hinchcliffe’s remarks at the rally, where he compared Puerto Rico to a “floating island of garbage.”
The Trump campaign immediately distanced themselves from the comment, with the former president denying he even knew the comedian before the rally.
“I don’t know anything about the comedian,” Trump told reporters Thursday. “I don’t know who he is. I’ve never seen him. I heard he made a statement, but it was just a statement that he made. He’s a comedian, what can I tell you? I know nothing about him.”
He also said that the comments are not “a big deal.”
Amidst the backlash, Hinchcliffe defended himself, writing on X that people have “no sense of humor.
Even popular podcaster Joe Rogan who recently hosted Trump for an interview, said he would have advised Hinchcliffe against the Puerto Rico joke given the setting.
“It’s just a bad environment for comedy,” Rogan said. “I would have told him don’t you … dare do that joke. And when I heard he did I went, ‘Oh here we go.’”
In the opinion essay, Martin, Manuel-Miranda and Moreno referenced Trump’s previous actions towards their country, including his response to Hurricane Maria in 2017, during which 4,600 citizens died.
“It takes a willful ignorance of American history, law and politics to blame Puerto Ricans for their own woes,” they added.
At the time, Trump also tweeted that Puerto Ricans “want everything to be done for them when it should be a community effort.”
Other celebrities of Puerto Rican descent have also come out to condemn Hinchcliffe’s offensive jokes and the Trump campaign, including actress Aubrey Plaza. Reggaeton singer Nicky Jam also rescinded his previous endorsement of the GOP candidate after the rally.
“Our vote won’t be a reaction to racist jokes. We’ll be voting for the future of a country that could be majority-minority by midcentury. That isn’t so far away. It’s 25 years since we started singing about ‘Livin’ La Vida Loca,’” Martin, Manual-Miranda and Moreno wrote, referencing Martin’s hit song.
The Hill has reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.