Mary Hart as emcee after Trump event
I am a retired LAPD detective who served for 20 years in the Department’s Anti-Terrorist Division, which included 10 years on the Los Angeles Task Force on Terrorism, headed by the F.B.I. I investigated white supremacy and was considered an expert in this culture, lecturing to other law enforcement organizations. I communicated with the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center regarding this topic.
The article in the July 10 Desert Sun (“Film fest resists calls to replace Mary Hart as emcee after Trump event”) reported some saw Mary Hart’s hand gesture at Mount Rushmore as signifying white supremacy. That could not be further from the truth.
My wife and I have known Mary and her husband, who is Jewish, for many years. Mary is a gracious lady who cares for everyone and is not a white supremacist by any means. Please check your cellphone and you will discover that her hand gesture is an emoji.
Your article may not call her a white supremacist, but I’m afraid some might not get it.
Removing her as emcee of the Palm Springs International Film Festival would be an injustice to our valley and all of the good she has done.
Al Taylor, Palm Desert