“Racism and hatred” keeps Pramila Jayapal away from Trump’s State of the Union address at end of the month

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Indian American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal of Seattle announced on Martin Luther King Jr. Day that she will not be attending President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address on Jan. 30 due to “racism and hatred” in the Whit House, according to the Seattle Times.

“With all the racism and hatred coming out of this White House, I will NOT be attending Donald Trump’s State of the Union address. Instead, I’m joining members of Congress like John Lewis and Maxine Waters (and) we will use the occasion to focus on the State of OUR Union, our opposition to his agenda, and we will lift up a progressive and inclusive vision of our country. I hope you’ll join us,” she wrote on Monday.

Jayapal, the first Indian American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives released a statement in which she credits her success to the message, work and courage of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“Dr. King put his life on the line for justice. If he were still with us during these trying times, he would be marching alongside us — pushing to raise the minimum wage and eradicate poverty, ensure health care for all, resist militarism, and combat racism,” she said in the news statement.

Jayapal also did not attend Trump’s inauguration last year and told PTI that she disagrees with Trump’s approach which is “narrow and self-serving.”

“This president has consistently indicated that he has no interest in leading a unified country. He has gone out of his way to play to a small and shrinking base of voters by using language that diminishes and demeans vast swaths of people in our own country and around the world. His path is dangerous. His path is destructive. His path cannot be normalized. I will not normalize it. This is our own form of non-violent resistance,” Jayapal told PTI.

According to PTI, Jayapal said that Indian Americans across the U.S. are “heartbroken, terrified and demoralized.”

“He does and says things that none of us, as parents, would condone for our children. He consistently uses language that is outright racist. He actively uses the highest office of the land to promote hatred as a political tool for his own benefit. As a brown immigrant female member of Congress, I feel the impact of these words personally, as well as collectively,” Jayapal told PTI.

According to a KIRO 7 report, Jayapal’s decision to not attend the State of the Union address on Jan. 30 comes after the disturbing reports and the vulgar remarks that Trump made last week, targeting African nations.