Donald Trump wanted a big civil rights photo-op at the International Civil Rights Center and Museum in Greensboro, North Carolina. Only he couldn't be bothered by the presence of having other people there at the same time. Too pedestrian. He wanted the museum all to himself for five hours so he could meander as he pleased. Rachel Chason writes of the museum's CEO:
John Swaine said the Trump campaign was trying to plan the Republican nominee’s visit to the historic museum Sept. 20, the same day he campaigned in High Point and Kenansville. Swaine said that campaign staff asked to videotape Trump walking around the museum and requested that the museum shut down for five hours to accommodate his visit.
“We made it known to Mr. Trump’s campaign that we were not going to grant a request of suspending our operations so he could somehow try to legitimize his ideological positions,” Swaine told The News & Observer. “The landmark is very important – it’s not just a political backdrop.”
The museum is in the former F.W. Woolworth building, the site of the 1960 lunch counter sit-in protest against segregated eating establishments. The facility seeks to commemorate the historic sit-in and to promote equality today.
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Trump didn’t want a real tour by trained staff, he just wanted a chance to walk around unfettered and show his deep concern for black Americans by kicking everyone else out of the venue. Naturally, Trump's rabid supporters have been threatening the museum’s staff over the phone and through social media since the news broke last week.
“The callers were threatening to come over and burn down the building and to shoot up the building,” he said. “They’ve lessened in frequency this week, but they’re still coming in.”