EL PASO, Texas－Beto will hold a Rally Against Fear Thursday, October 17 to directly confront Donald Trump’s dangerous hatred and division on the night he tries to spread it across the battleground state of Texas. The 6:00 p.m. event held in the Theatre at Grand Prairie will bring the region, the state, and the country together to counter Trump and demonstrate that his hatred, division, harmful rhetoric, blatant lawlessness, and corruption has no place in America.
“We will not be defined by this president’s fear, his hate, or the differences between us that he tries to exploit but instead by a renewed sense of hope and a unified vision for the future of our country,” said O’Rourke. “In this moment of smallness, paranoia, and division, Texas is going to lead the way with our strength, our courage, our diversity, and the big, bold, ambitious things we want to achieve together.”
Members of the public can RSVP here. Information on press credentials is below.
Following the deadliest attack against the Latinx community in American history, which left 22 dead in El Paso, Beto called on Americans to recognize the connection between the dissemination of hate speech by Trump and acts of violence committed across America. Since the launch of his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump has publicly espoused racist, white supremacist, and degrading attacks against people of color, immigrants, women, entire faith communities, those living with disabilities, and LGBTQ Americans. That hatred has manifested itself in violence across the country as hate crimes rose over three straight years and counties that hosted Trump rallies saw hate crimes rise by more than 200%.
Next Thursday’s event will be the second time this year that Beto has directly countered a Trump rally in Texas. Back in February, Beto brought together thousands in his hometown around a positive and ambitious message while Trump visited El Paso to attack immigrants and spread lies about the border.
The competing rallies also highlight Texas’s status as a battleground state. In 2018, Beto unlocked Texas’s 38 electoral votes by building a historic grassroots campaign that forever transformed Texas and put the state in play for the first time in decades. Swinging the state by 25 points since 2014, he received more votes than any Democrat in Texas history, won Independents for the first time in decades, and got the support of nearly half a million Republicans while running on a progressive agenda. Beto’s diverse coalition led to a 36% increase in support from Latinx Texans and a 35% increase in support from women throughout Texas when compared to the state’s last Democratic Senate election results. Young voter turnout also increased by more than 200%. Polling has shown Beto can win the state’s 38 electoral votes, ensuring that Donald Trump is resoundingly defeated in November of 2020.
Members of the public can RSVP here.
Rally Against Fear
Thursday, October 17
Doors Open to Public: 6:00 PM CT
Press Call Time: 5:30 PM CT
The Theatre at Grand Prairie
1001 Performance Pl.
Grand Prairie, TX 75050
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