Matt Damon has some strong words for the way Donald Trump responded to the white nationalist rally and attack in Charlottesville last month.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the star spoke about the horror of what had happened in Virginia, saying, “A lot of people, myself included, are really waking up to the extent of the existing racism, and it’s so much worse than I naively thought. I just feel naïve at this point. It was shocking to see those kids — they looked 20 and 30 years old — in button-down shirts, with Tiki torches, walking down the street.”
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“I naively thought that, behind our generation, [another one] was coming with more awareness and inclusiveness, and that everything was getting better with each generation,” Damon continued. “And to see these young, aggrieved, white boys walking with their torches and screaming ‘Jews will not replace us!’ It was just shocking.”
And on how President Trump reacted to those events, the actor was clear: “The night that the president [made his] ‘many sides’ comment was absolutely abhorrent,” Damon said. “Look, everybody’s got a voice at this point and everybody’s shouting their opinions. But I’m obviously very concerned with the state of things and with the damage that’s being done to our institutions; it’s just very pernicious what he’s doing.”
In February, Damon commented on Trump’s plan for a wall on the America-Mexico border, saying, “I’m not a believer in walls.”
Last year, before Trump was elected, Damon took aim at him in his commencement speech at MIT. “If there are multiple simulations, how come we have to be in the one where Donald Trump becomes the Republican nominee for president?” Damon said. “Can we like transfer to a different one?”
