Earlier this month Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump engaged in a racist diatribe against U.S. District Court Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel. The judge is currently presiding over one of the many cases against Trump University that is being called by many a scheme that defrauded students. Trump stated that Curiel could not be a fair judge in the case against him stating in part ““He’s Mexican. We’re building a wall between here and Mexico.” An outrageous attempt at race baiting and completely untrue, Curiel was born in Indiana and his parents were Mexican immigrants.
But Trump has also caused anger among the bothers of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, because Curiel is also a Kappa. Members of the fraternity have started a Change.Org petition called “Men of Kappa Stand in Solidarity with Judge Gonzalo Curiel.” The petition reveals the following information about their fellow Nupl. It states:
“A graduate of Indiana University (BA ‘1976) and Indiana University School of Law (JD ‘1979), Brother Curiel was initiated at the Alpha Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. in 1974, and has led a distinguished career of service in the public interest.”
In addition it lays out six facts about Judge Curiel:
- A U.S. Citizen born in Indiana.
- A member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc.
- The son of parents of Mexican ancestry.
- Appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the bench in 2006.
- Appointed by President Barack Obama as a federal judge in 2011.
- Currently the presiding judge in a class action lawsuit filed by former students of Trump University.
For his part, Trump has given a non-apology and reiterated his sentiment regarding Curiel and his ability as a judge. The comments have been met with outrage by members of Trump’s own political party and claims that he is damaging the perception of Republicans with his racist rhetoric.
