NBC Deletes Tweet Comparing Immigrants To ‘Trash’

NBC Deletes Tweet Comparing Immigrants To ‘Trash’

Laurel Duggan on September 16, 2022

NBC News deleted a tweet that compared immigrants to trash in light of the recent movement of several dozen illegal immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard Friday.

The outlet shared its article on Twitter about Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis sending 50 migrants to Martha’s Vineyard as part of a state project relocating migrants to sanctuary cities. The tweet included a quote from a refugee foundation leader which compared the relocation of immigrants to throwing one’s own trash in different areas.

“Florida Gov. DeSantis sending asylum-seekers to Martha’s Vineyard is like ‘me taking my trash out and just driving to different areas where I live and just throwing my trash there,’ a founding member of a foundation that helps refugees says,” the tweet read.

Deleted pic.twitter.com/UJOoEJUZwy

— Laurel Duggan (@laureldugg) September 16, 2022

NBC’s article attributed the quote to Max Lefeld, a founding member of the Casa Venezuela Dallas foundation who, like most of the migrants sent to Martha’s Vineyard, is Venezuelan-American.

The comments come amid a broader media blowback against DeSantis’ relocation of the migrants: the 50 individuals who arrived at Martha’s Vineyard triggered numerous negative articles portraying the situation as a humanitarian crisis. Meanwhile, more than 500 migrants illegally crossing the border into Del Rio, Texas (a town of comparable size), has drawn little media attention.

The Martha’s Vineyard migrants were voluntarily transported to a military base on Cape Cod after Massachusetts mobilized the National Guard to relocate them and provide support.

NBC did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.