Iowa Representative Steve King, a
Republican, has criticized Emma Gonzalez for wearing a patch of the
Cuban flag at Saturday's March For Our Lives rally.
Gonzalez, a survivor of last month's
shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland,
Florida, was among the Parkland students who spoke at Saturday's
March For Our Lives protest in Washington. Gonzalez, 18, is also the
openly bisexual president of her school's Gay-Straight Alliance club.
A photo of Gonzalez, who is
Cuban-American, speaking at the march was posted on King's Facebook
page. It was captioned: “This is how you look when you claim Cuban
heritage yet don't speak Spanish and ignore the fact that your
ancestors fled the island when the dictatorship turned Cuba into a
prison camp, after removing all weapons from its citizens; hence
their right to self defense.”
King's congressional office told The
Washington Post that King's campaign team was responsible for
the post.
King has a record of criticizing
immigrants and minorities. He's also a vocal opponent of LGBT
rights.