Donald Trump Jr. compared Syrian refugees to a bowl of poisoned Skittles in an attempt to draw support for his father’s presidential campaign.
In a post published to Twitter on Monday evening, Trump Jr. warned against admitting Syrian refugees into the United States.
"If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you, would you take a handful?" read the graphic posted by Trump Jr. "That’s our Syrian refugee problem."
This image says it all. Let's end the politically correct agenda that doesn't put America first. #trump2016 pic.twitter.com/9fHwog7ssN
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) September 19, 2016
Trump Jr. tweeted, "the image says it all" and demanded that the U.S. "end the politically correct agenda that doesn’t put America first."
Donald Trump has called for a suspension of the Syrian refugee resettlement program, charging that it endangers U.S. national security. The White House announced last week that it planned to accept 110,000 refugees from around the world in the upcoming fiscal year, marking a 30 percent increase from this year’s target goal.
The Skittles parent company, Wrigley Americas, condemned Trump Jr.’s tweet.
"Skittles are candy; refugees are people. It’s an inappropriate analogy," Vice President of Corporate Affairs Denise Young said in a statement. "We respectfully refrain from further comment, as that could be misinterpreted as marketing."
There are currently some 5 million Syrians registered with the United Nations refugee agency. The majority of them live in Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon. About one million Syrians have requested asylum to Europe, according to official figures.