By Alyson Chuyang

Staff Writer

The White House has been a symbol of freedom and democracy in a country that accepts and encourages diversity, but since the inauguration of President Donald Trump, these values have been slowly turning on their head. 

Early in January, a video circulated around the internet of students from Covington Catholic High School mocking Nathan Phillips as he peacefully recited a prayer of his tribe to the beat of drums. 

Phillips, an Omaha Nation elder, was trying to clear bad-mouthing between the students and a group of African American nationalists known as the Black Hebrew Israelites.  

Within the sea of “Make America Great Again” hats and scarves, Covington students were yelling ignorant slurs and phrases such as “build the wall” and “go back to Africa,” in order to intimidate and mock Phillips, he told reporters at CNN.

Reactions toward the video began pouring in as soon as it came out. Many people took offense to the behavior and actions of the group, especially at Covington Catholic junior, Nick Sandmann, who stood in front of Phillips and did nothing to disperse his heated classmates. 

However, despite all the obvious backlash from the video, one group did show their support for the Covington students, and it was the White House.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders voiced support for the Covington students on behalf of the Trump administration.  According to CNN, Sanders said “No one understands better than this president when the media jumps to conclusions and attacks you for something you may or may not have done.”

Since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s campaign and throughout his term, he has been accusing multiple news outlets of spreading “fake news” about him or any mishaps during his term. 

In a strongly worded tweet, he said “Nick Sandmann and the students of Covington have become symbols of Fake News and how evil it can be.” 

Trump continued, “They have captivated the attention of the world, and I know they will use it for the good – maybe even to bring people together.”

It started off unpleasant, but can end in a dream!” 

What is flawed in this tweet is that Trump claims the media backlash was because of “fake news,” but the video that went viral showed exactly what was reported in the news and there is no disproving that. 

The rhetoric that this administration has verbalized to the rest of the country can be summed up by this event; a group of Trump -supporting students gathered and verbally harassed a harmless man and because of the president’s support, this group of students became the victim, not Phillips. 

Along with voicing support for the group of students, the White House has extended an invitation for the students involved to come visit as soon as the government shutdown ends, Sarah Sanders told the press. 

However, a date has not been set since the government reopened. 

Historically, the White House has invited Nobel Prize winners, humanitarians, championship-winning athletes and world leaders to its famous halls.

However, even the pretense of visiting the White House has shifted since the start of the Trump Administration. 

Since 2017, champion athletes representing teams such as the New England Patriots, the Golden State Warriors and the Seattle Storm have all declined invitations to visit Trump’s White House in protest of his policies. 

So long as Trump is in office, we can soundly expect more boycotts like these.

The extent of who the White House invites is definitely beyond a group that stands for racial divide and discrimination toward indigenous and minority people. 

Involving themselves with internet discourse and argument is below what the White House stands for. 

It seems that if someone supports President Trump, he will support their actions right back, no matter how inappropriate or offensive it may be. 

When I was young, I looked to the White House as a grand, shining symbol that made me proud to live in this free country.

Now, I look to the White House and see a symbol of the decaying class and respect that the administration has for itself and the nation.  

Since both the president and the Covington Catholic boy have undergone media backlash, it is not surprising that Trump’s press secretary has voiced the

administration’s support. 

However, racism is something that should never be condoned or bolstered in the manner that the Trump administration is doing with this invitation.