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Trump shares video of white couple pointing guns at St Louis protesters

US president’s apparent endorsement comes amid furore over now-deleted ‘white power’ video 

David Maclean
New York
,Gino Spocchia
Monday 29 June 2020 14:13 BST
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Couple point guns at protesters in St Louis

Donald Trump has shared a video of a white couple pointing guns at protesters in St Louis, who were marching to the mayor’s house to demand her resignation.

The clip shows the unidentified pair standing outside their home on Sunday night – the woman is seen pointing a handgun at the crowd. A man is seen holding a rifle.

Almost 100,000 people have since viewed the same video, which comes after Mr Trump retweeted a video in which someone yells “white power” at protesters in a Florida.

Mr Trump later deleted that Twitter post, and a White House spokesperson said he had not heard the comments in the clip.

Protesters in St Louis on Sunday were meanwhile ushered past the white couple with guns, who Mr Trump appeared to endorse with his tweet on Monday.

The group of more than 500 people were marching towards the home of the mayor, Lyda Krewson, chanting, “Resign Lyda, take the cops with you.”

She had apologised on Sunday after she read-out the names and addresses of residents who had written to her about defunding the police, during a Facebook live video that has since been deleted, reported CBS.

“She’s apologised, acknowledges she made a mistake and has absolutely no intention of resigning,” said a spokesperson on Sunday.

Some 44,000 people had now signed a petition calling on Ms Krewson to resign after she “endangered the lives of protesters by releasing their names and addresses.”

The petition also condemnes the St Louis’ mayor over her support for police funding amid nationwide calls to abolish and defund police departments after George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis police custody on 25 May.

“She is an abysmal leader and complacent in a white supremacist agenda thus holding St. Louis back from progress,” added the petition. ”To alleviate community relations we demand that Mayor Krewson resign from office and a special election be held to replace her.”

State representative Rasheen Aldridge told protesters on Sunday: “As a leader, you don’t do stuff like that ... it’s only right that we visit her at her home”.

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