Viral

Green shirt guy’ laughs in the face of bigotry and goes viral for all the right reasons

Green shirt guy’ laughs in the face of bigotry and goes viral for all the right reasons

With Donald Trump’s recent antics becoming increasingly criticised for causing division in America it can be easy to feel like the idiots are taking over.

Sometimes we need reminding that amongst the chaos and the angriest of Trump supporters there are still more than enough people among us who find such regularly toxic rhetoric laughable.

Enter ‘Green Shirt Guy’: whose gut reaction to bigotry went viral for bringing the release we all need.

It was a Tuesday night in Tucson, Arizona, and the city council was about to approve an initiative that could eventually make it a "sanctuary city" – one that limits their enforcement of the federal government's immigration law.

While the decision already had enough votes to pass to the next stage in Tucson, two members of the meeting were fairly incensed by the idea.

Brandishing placards reading "respect our laws or we will deport you" and "stop rewarding start deporting", a MAGA-hat sporting Jennifer Harrison and Jeremy Bronaugh took to their feet.

Both members of the extremist Patriot Movement, one could be forgiven for reacting with hurt, anger or even fear at the anger behind their anti-migrant message but this would arguably be playing into the hate that such people are so keen to sow.

But for comedian Alex Kack, the ridiculousness of it all was enough to make him burst into soul-soothing, infectious laughter, unwilling to give supporters divisive chants the time that they desperately wanted.

He happened to be wearing a green-coloured top at the time, and with that the legend of Green Shirt Guy was born.

As the video quickly went viral, many shared their approval of Mr Kack's reaction:

To the sound of someone shouting "you are in direct violation of being an asshole" and the image of Mr Kack's belly laughs, the two protesters were led out of the building by police.

Arizona's Patriot Movement have been banned from the state's House of Representatives, and are facing legal action for allegedly threatening and harassing people who help migrants, according to Arizona Public Media.

After the event, Mr Kack gave his thoughts on why his reaction had been shared so widely. He mused:

The majority of this country, regardless of their political affiliation understands that the loudest voices happening right now are kind of ridiculous. And I think that laughter is resonating because that's how people feel right now.

While 'Green Shirt Guy' has emerged as a true national hero, there were others gathered at the city council meeting who should not be missed.

More: A couple had a 'Trump themed' wedding and it is as bad as it sounds

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