Jorge Ramos: Words Matter

Some residents of Trump Place in New York are so ashamed of living in an apartment complex that bears the name of the Republican presidential candidate that they’ve petitioned to get it removed.

According to a recent article in The New York Times, removing all traces of Trump’s name from Trump Place would not be as easy as pulling the letters off the buildings — contracts have been signed, and agreements are in place.

Still, the issue is bothering many residents. Many are afraid that their friends, relatives and co-workers will identify their Trump Place address with a man who has railed against immigrants, Muslims, women, disabled people and other groups since he launched his bid for the White House last summer.

Simply put: Words matter, and some cut deeply. That’s why during these last days before U.S. presidential election, I thought it would be worthwhile to revisit some of Trump’s own words. Perhaps they will demonstrate why even living in a building with his name on the front might be unsettling.

June 16, 2015: On immigrants from Mexico: “They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.”

Aug. 7, 2015: On Megyn Kelly, a Fox News anchor, after she challenged Trump at the first Republican debate over insults he has launched at women: “There was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her … wherever.”

Aug. 25, 2015: Moments before Trump ejected me from his news conference in Iowa: “Sit down, sit down, sit down. … You haven’t been called. Go back to Univision.”

July 18, 2015: On Republican Sen. John McCain, who was a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War: “He’s not a war hero. … He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured.”

Nov. 12, 2015: On his military knowledge: “I know more about ISIS than the generals do. Believe me.”

Nov. 24, 2015: After mocking/mimicking a New York Times reporter with a physical disability: “Now, the poor guy, you ought to see this guy.”

Dec. 7, 2015: On Muslims coming to the U.S.: “Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.”

Feb. 6: On a torture technique that simulates the sensation of drowning: “I would bring back waterboarding, and I’d bring back a hell of a lot worse than waterboarding.”

Feb. 28: After being asked on CNN if he repudiated the endorsement of a former Ku Klux Klan leader: “I don’t know anything about David Duke, OK? I don’t know anything about what you’re even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists.”

June 3: On Indiana-born Judge Gonzalo Curiel, who is presiding over a lawsuit against Trump University: “I’ve been treated very unfairly by this judge. Now, this judge is of Mexican heritage. I’m building a wall, OK? I’m building a wall.”

July 27: On hacking into Hillary Clinton’s email: “Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.” (His campaign later said Trump was joking.)

July 30: After Khizr Khan, the father of Capt. Humayun Khan, an American soldier killed in 2004 by a suicide bomber in Iraq, criticized Trump’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S.: “If you look at his wife, she was standing there. She had nothing to say. She probably — maybe she wasn’t allowed to have anything to say. You tell me.”

Aug. 31: After his unexpected visit with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto: “Mexico will pay for the wall.”

Sept. 16: After years of publicly casting doubt on the birthplace of the nation’s first African-American president: “Barack Obama was born in the United States. Period.”

Sept. 26: After Clinton posited at a debate that Trump hasn’t paid federal taxes for years: “That makes me smart.”

Sept. 27: After a former Miss Universe winner from Venezuela accused Trump of mistreatment: Alicia Machado “gained a massive amount of weight, and it was a real problem.”

Oct. 7: From a video recorded aboard a bus in 2005 by “Access Hollywood”: “When you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the pussy.”

Oct. 19: To Clinton during the third presidential debate: “Such a nasty woman.”

Oct. 20: On how he will react to election results: “I will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election … if I win.”

Oct. 22: On the 11 women who have publicly accused Trump of groping and sexual harassment: “Every woman lied. … All of these liars will be sued after the election is over.”
Yes, words matter.

Jorge Ramos, an Emmy Award-winning journalist, is a news anchor on Univision and the host of America With Jorge Ramos on Fusion. Originally from Mexico and now based in Florida, Ramos is the author of several best-selling books. His latest is “Take a Stand: Lessons From Rebels.”