Dr. Ben Carson Referred To Slaves as “Immigrants” During Speech

Dr. Ben Carson, the Secretary for Housing and Development referred to slaves as “immigrants” while speaking to HUD employees.

Ben Carson slaves as immigrants comment

“That’s what America is about, a land of dreams and opportunity,” Carson said. “There were other immigrants who came here in the bottom of slave ships, worked even longer, even harder for less. But they too had a dream that one day their sons, daughters, grandsons, granddaughters, great-grandsons, great-granddaughters, might pursue prosperity and happiness in this land.”

Ben Carson just referred to *slaves* as “immigrants”

“There were other immigrants who came here in the bottom of slave ships…” pic.twitter.com/WkFrm3dYCB

— Steve Kopack (@SteveKopack) March 6, 2017

Of course the comparison prompted backlash on Twitter immediately following publicity of his speech:

Immigrants??? https://t.co/f0RH7iXBrn

— NAACP (@NAACP) March 6, 2017

#BenCarson can’t be serious right? 😒 #huffpost https://t.co/CRMcJZLA3Z

— Unheard Voices Mag (@unheardvoices) March 6, 2017

Inappropriate

Rana Hogarth, a slavery expert at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign told the Associated Press that Carson’s remarks were “inappropriate and wildly inaccurate.”

A HUD spokesperson told Michael Del Moro of Good Morning America that no one in the room thought the secretary “was confusing voluntary immigration with involuntary servitude. Please.”

HUD spox says no one in the room believed Secretary Ben Carson “was confusing voluntary immigration with involuntary servitude. Please.”

— Michael Del Moro (@MikeDelMoro) March 6, 2017

An immigrant is someone who comes to live permanently in a foreign country. Africans slaves were taken from their homeland and forced here. But I digress.