Violence in the name of Donald Trump has plagued the country since the start of his campaign for president in 2015. Throughout his years in office, he has not only encouraged his supporters to act in violence but vowed to support and pay for the legal fees of those who do. In the latest incident of violence invoked by Trump supporters, a video shared on social media clearly depicts a man punching a Portland activist.
According to The Daily Beast, the activist, identified as Anthony Harrington, said he traveled to Washington, D.C., to protest the Republican National Convention (RNC) and was punched in the head by pro-Trump writer and talk radio host Eric Metaxas on Thursday. Metaxas was allegedly one of 1,500 attendees at Trump’s RNC speech on the White House lawn; following the speech he joined a crowd of people walking the streets where protesters had been demonstrating all night.
Video of the incident shows Harrington biking and yelling “Fuck Trump, fuck you!”. As he rode past the group of Trump supporters, Harrington is then seen being punched in the side or back of the head. While Metaxas did not return requests to The Daily Beast for a comment, the news outlet confirmed that the clothing he wore to the RNC speech matched the clothing of the assailant, as per an Instagram post.
Alleged friends of Metaxas also believe he punched Harrington, adding that he probably had reasonable cause too. “But I tell you, there’s a part of me that was not sorry to see Eric punch the guy, though it was apparently just a glancing blow. You just get so sick of these people and their filthy mouths, and their berserk screaming at people,” Christian writer Rod Dreher wrote in a blog post. “You get sick of the pornification of the public square, and the degeneration of civil standards. Sometimes you have to use violence to preserve order.”
Aside from Harrington’s recollection that Metaxas attacked him and Dreher’s blog, evidence in the footage including a woman yelling “Eric” several times supports Harrington’s claims, The Daily Beast reported. Washington court records indicate that Metaxas has not yet been charged with any crimes. Harrington told The Daily Beast he may consider a civil suit but does not plan to file any criminal charges as it is “not my style.”
The video has garnered attention not only because of the violence depicted but because of Metaxas’ history as a “Christian for Trump.” Metaxas has published a number of pieces on why Christians should support Trump including a children’s book Donald Drains the Swamp and an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal titled, “The Christian Case for Trump.”
Trump and some of his supporters have a habit of condoning unprovoked violence against others but are quick to call protesters and activists violent. Daily Kos reported in August that a man shot a woman with a BB gun for accidentally removing a “Trump 2020” lawn sign from his yard. The man showed no regret for resorting to violence. While Trump consistently supports such people and their hate, he is quick to call movements like Black Lives Matter and peaceful demonstrations violent and disruptive.
The Thursday incident comes amid ongoing protests against racial injustice following the brutal police shooting of unarmed Jacob Blake, a Black man from Wisconsin who is now partially paralyzed as a result. In a related incident, last week 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse was charged with two homicide counts after allegedly shooting protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin. His actions were not condemned by Trump and many of his supporters; instead Trump liked a tweet promoting Rittenhouse’s actions on Sunday. "Kyle Rittenhouse is a good example of why I decided to vote for Trump," the tweet said.
