One of the girls decided to wear a Make America Great Again hat and Trump t-shirt to the most famous historically black university in the nation has said she does not plan on apologizing.
Allie Vandee was ridiculed over the weekend when she wore the Trump ensemble to Howard University in Washington D.C..
And while the Erie, Pennsylvania, high schooler feels she was unfairly mocked, she asserts that she won’t be pulling the stunt again.
Allie Vandee (left) was ridiculed over the weekend when she wore the Trump ensemble to Howard University in Washington D.C.
And while the Erie, Pennsylvania, high schooler feels she was unfairly mocked, she asserts that she won’t be pulling the stunt again
‘Knowing that I would be harassed as bad as I was, I would still love Trump. I feel as though to keep the peace, I would just lay low,’ she said.
Vandee spoke with The Tab about the encounter at the highly respected university.
The 16-year-old is part of a group called Talent Search, aimed at helping students plan for college through meetings once a month.
According to Vandee, the group went on a trip to DC to see the history and decided to eat at a local college, like they had done on a previous trip to Cleveland State.
She said: ‘So we didn’t get much background on Howard at all from our DC tour guide. He never said it was a predominately African-American school.
‘Knowing that I would be harassed as bad as I was, I would still love Trump. I feel as though to keep the peace, I would just lay low,’ she said
‘Either way, in my defense, it shouldn’t matter what I wear anywhere and when I wear it.’
Vandee claims that she had never heard of Howard before, going even further to state that she didn’t know that ‘there were historically black colleges.’
She added that they don’t have them around where she lives, where the closest HBCUs in Pennsylvannia are over five hours away.
‘So this was a little bit of culture shock, and I’m taking a lot of good and positivity from this lesson,’ she added.
‘But I honestly had no idea it was a historically black college and these people are harassing me for not knowing I did, but I swear to God, me and my friend were innocently wearing Trump stuff.
‘We stopped at Howard on the way home and we were harassed.
Vandee continued describing the altercation where a man took her friends hat and how the moment made her feel ‘a little bit intimidated.’
She said: ‘Why would they take her hat? I realized this must be like, anti-Trump.
The teen then states that the pair received a lot of ‘dirty looks; when they walked in the cafeteria and that people were taking pictures and laughing at them.
Vandee claims that she had never heard of Howard before, going even further to state that she didn’t know that ‘there were historically black colleges’
‘Actually a girl was videotaping us in line and saying: “Who do these people think they are?”
‘They were putting us on their Snapchat. I really did not expect that.
‘I can walk and roam the streets in Erie and wear as much Trump gear as I please and none of that would happen to me.’
Since the incident, Vandee claims she has received ‘well over 500 direct messages’ harassing her, but that she’s gotten support too.
She also alleged that someone had said to have found her address and threatened to kill her. Another, that her mom had aborted the teen.
‘Kill yourself, you’re a racist, you’re a white supremacist, you’re a Nazi. It’s way out of hand,’ Vandee said.
People have responded to the girls Twitter post with criticism
Since the incident, Vandee claims she has received ‘well over 500 direct messages’ harrassing her, but that she’s gotten support too
She said: ‘But there are a lot of people out there who say: “Thanks for standing up for what you believe in.”
And looking back, the teen does understand where the frustration was coming from.
She said: ‘But there’s different ways to approach the situation. They were saying I was racist, a Nazi, a white supremacist, in the KKK and that is not the case.
‘If I want to support my president and your president, then I’m going to do as I please. It would be different if I walked in with KKK and Nazi stuff.
‘Donald Trump is not a Nazi. They weren’t just labeling me, they were labeling our president as these horrible groups. The way they approached the situation was horrible and completely uncalled for.
She also alleged that someone had said to have found her address and threatened to kill her. Another, that her mom had aborted the teen
She said: ‘But there are a lot of people out there who say: “Thanks for standing up for what you believe in”
Apparently, some fellow students explained to Vandee that the college students were responding to Charlottesville and Trump’s remark on them
But the teen doesn’t feel sorry at all for her actions.
‘I will say sorry for your misunderstanding. I won’t apologize for supporting our president.
‘Like I said, I can roam the streets in Erie, I can walk around DC all I want and wear as much Trump stuff as I want. I never realized going into Howard I would be harassed.’
Apparently, some fellow students explained to Vandee that the college students were responding to Charlottesville and Trump’s remark on them.
After the students explained to me about Charlottesville, they said primarily that was the reason why they were talking to me,’ Vandee said.
‘They felt as if Trump was siding with the KKK and the Nazis when in reality he wasn’t. He waited to present his opinion on the situation when he had all the facts.
‘I have the utmost respect for him for doing that, and that is not what the liberals wanted.
Vandee asserts that she has no plans on going back to the University.
She said: ‘After the death threats and saying they want to beat me up, I would not put myself in that situation. Just stay classy and avoid it.’