Melania Trump Loudly Booed At Opioid Awareness Summit In Baltimore
Melania Trump did not receive a warm welcome in the city her husband recently described as “a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.”
The first lady was in Baltimore on Tuesday (Nov. 26) to speak at the B’More Youth Summit on Opioid Awareness and many in the crowd, which was largely made up of people of color, youth, and city residents, loudly booed her as she took the stage, the Washington Post reports.
The jeering continued for most of her five-minute speech and got louder again when she left the stage, the Washington Post reports.
Earlier this year, Donald Trump went on a rant for several weeks about Baltimore and the late Rep. Elijah Cummings, which proudly represented the Maryland city where he was from.
In response to Tuesday’s sneers and jeers from the audience at the summit, Mrs. Trump defended the attendees’ rights to express their opinion.
She also defended her stance on speaking out against the harms of opioids, the Washington Post reports.
“We live in a democracy and everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the fact is we have a serious crisis in our country and I remain committed to educating children on the dangers and deadly consequences of drug abuse,” she said in a statement released shortly after the event, the Washington Post reports.
Not everyone was so understanding of the crowds’ reactions.
“Because it’s Melania Trump, people feel as though they get a pass,” Fox’s Tomi Lahren said. “It’s absolutely wrong. It’s despicable. Young people need to learn a lesson in this country, you just respect people.”
Others had a different perspective on the situation and didn’t hesitate to share their reactions on social media.
According to one person on Twitter, Tuesday’s event was not the first time the FLOTUS has been booed.
In 2017, President Trump donated a quarter of his $400,000 annual salary toward efforts to stem the opioid crisis, CNBC reports.
On Tuesday (Nov. 26), he repeated that donation. Since taking office, Trump has committed to donating his entire salary to various causes, CNBC reports.
