A billboard mocking Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and three other Democratic congresswomen of color as "idiots" was erected over the weekend by a gun shop in Murphy, North Carolina, drawing the ire of gun control advocates and liberals, The Charlotte Observer reports.
Cherokee Guns is also being criticized for inciting violence against the women, Reps. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. and Rep. Ocasio-Cortez. They are known to many as "The Squad," a group of diverse, young women in Congress.
Pressley blamed President Donald Trump for the rhetoric and called on Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., to address the billboard.
"#Racist rhetoric from the occupant of the @WhiteHouse has made hate our new normal. We are still vulnerable. @RepMarkMeadows – Cherokee Guns is in your district & you and I serve on a committee together. Here's your chance to finally do the right thing."
Tlaib tweeted:
"How the hell is this not inciting violence?"
Gun shop owner Doc Wacholz told Asheville's Citizen-Times he had no intention of inciting violence.
"It's a statement. It's an opinion," he said. "They're socialists, from my point of view. I also feel a couple of them, being Muslim, have ties to actual terrorist groups."
The company behind the ad Wednesday said the sign was coming down.
"For all those who has concern over the Cherokee Guns Artwork, the board is coming down," the company wrote on Facebook. "This creative never came on managements desk for approval. We understand this is a delicate subject and we greatly apologize for it ever going up."
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