- President Donald Trump is pushing back his rally in Tulsa from June 19 — Juneteenth — to June 20.
- He tweeted the announcement on Friday night.
- Trump said he made the decision "out of respect" for the holiday.
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President Donald Trump has rescheduled his June 19 rally in Tulsa "out of respect."
"We had previously scheduled our #MAGA Rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for June 19th – a big deal. Unfortunately, however, this would fall on the Juneteenth Holiday," Trump wrote in a tweet.
In a rare reversal, he tweeted that he made the decision after "many African American friends and supporters have reached out to suggest that we consider changing the date."
"I have therefore decided to move our rally to Saturday, June 20th, in order to honor their requests," Trump wrote.
We had previously scheduled our #MAGA Rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for June 19th – a big deal. Unfortunately, however, this would fall on the Juneteenth Holiday. Many of my African American friends and supporters have reached out to suggest that we consider changing the date out...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2020
Earlier this week, Trump announced that he planned to restart his campaign rallies — after pausing them because of the novel coronavirus — in Tulsa on June 19.
The move garnered criticism since the rally would be held on Juneteenth — a holiday to celebrate the end of slavery that is commemorated by Black Americans as an independence day — in a city where a race massacre took place 99 years ago.
Tulsa was the site of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre, which unfolded 99 years ago on June 1. In Tulsa, A white mob destroyed "Black Wall Street" and historians estimate 300 were killed.
At the time of the announcement, Trump advisor Katrina Pierson defended the move in a statement.
"As part of the party of Lincoln, Republicans are proud of the history of Juneteenth, which is the anniversary of the last reading of the Emancipation Proclamation," Pierson wrote.
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