Anderson Cooper betrayed his usually unflappable and cool demeanor on Thursday (Jan. 11) when he addressed Donald Trump’s reported comments about immigration from Haiti and African countries, places the president described as “shitholes.”
On his CNN show AC360, Cooper, who reported live from Haiti during the devastating earthquake of 2010, didn’t hold back any punches and described the quotes attributed to Trump as flatly “racist.” “The president of the United States is tired of so many black people coming into this country. Tired of immigrants from Haiti and Africa being allowed in,” Cooper said at the beginning of a hard-hitting segment.
“Perhaps the White House feels the president’s remarks will be well-received in some parts of this country, among some parts of the president’s base, and perhaps that is true but it doesn’t make what he said any less ignorant or any less racist. Not racial. Not racially charged, racist. Let’s not kid ourselves. Let’s not pretend or dance around it. The sentiment the president expressed today is a racist sentiment,” Cooper added.
He continued: “Tired of Africans and Haitians, the president said he would like to bring more people from countries like Norway. Norway, which population is overwhelmingly of Nordic descent. White people in other words.”
Later in the show, a visibly angry and emotional Cooper again took the president to task for this comment. Cooper choked up as he recounted his experiences in Haiti, at the frontline of rescue attempts during the earthquake and said that Trump could learn something about dignity and strength from the Haitian people he encountered.
This article originally appeared on THR.com.