[A] southern Vermont legislator is speaking out after being the target of racially loaded comments on social media.
A Twitter user posted comments mocking Rep. Kiah Morris, D-Bennington, based on her race. The user was responding to a tweet announcing that Morris was projected to win the uncontested Democratic primary for her district Aug. 9.
The Twitter user with the name “Max Misch” posted a caricature of a black person and a comment that included racially charged mimicry and distortions of vulgarities. The user tagged Morris, who is one of two black members of the House of Representatives.
The Twitter profile identifies Misch as an Army veteran in Bennington who identifies with the “alt right” movement. Misch has posted retweets from David Duke, the former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan who is running for U.S. Senate in Louisiana.
Morris retweeted Misch’s posts Tuesday with the comment, “For the folks in the back row. Tell me again that race does not have an (effect) on Vermont politics.”
She also posted a screenshot of the tweets on her campaign Facebook page with a statement.
“When you allow drive-by harassment of locals on social media pages but do not speak out against it, you endorse this kind of behavior and discourse in our communities,” wrote Morris, who is running for a second term. “Deny them the audience. Decry the hatred. You have an obligation to do so.”
Morris’ posts prompted an outpouring of comments from her supporters and legislative colleagues, including Rep. Mitzi Johnson, D-South Hero, and House Speaker Shap Smith, D-Morristown.
In a statement to reporters Wednesday, Morris identified herself as a “proud public servant, wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend and Vermonter.”
“The actions of one person prove that he has no respect for Vermont values nor for those who live in our communities. His actions were an assault on each one of us,” Morris said.
“It is my belief that the work we must all engage in requires that we both admonish this behavior and work ever more diligently towards eradicating systems that allow for hate and hate crimes to thrive in our state,” she continued.
Reached by VTDigger via Twitter direct message, the person using the Max Misch account acknowledged having made the post and said the reason was that Morris is not racially representative of the majority of her electoral district.
Curtiss Reed, executive director of the Vermont Partnership for Fairness and Diversity, called the post from the Max Misch account “disgusting to say the least given that we’re in 2016.”
Reed said the group encourages people from all under-represented communities to seek public office, whether at local or state levels.
“In order for Vermont to build on its greatness, it really needs to have more representative voices,” Reed said.
Reed did not recall hearing similar stories of race-based harassment from other public officials of color.
“This is a really frightening event,” Reed said.
Mark Hughes, of the civil rights group Justice for All, had not seen the comments on Twitter but said he wasn’t surprised to hear about them.
“To me it seems like it should be a no-brainer that of course, we do have racism in this state,” Hughes said.
Hughes said racial harassment directed at public officials is interlinked with racial discrimination in other parts of society in Vermont and beyond.
“You think about the racial, social, political climate across the United States,” Hughes said. “We are one of the United States.”
Rep. Kesha Ram, D-Burlington, said the comments illustrate an “undercurrent of experience” for people of color in Vermont.
“I know that people of color are simply not immune in this state. We know that racism exists everywhere,” Ram said.
