An anti-Trump student at the University of California Riverside who stole a classmates MAGA hat and went on a profanity laced tirade about how it represented “genocide” is now facing criminal charges.
“You know what this represents? This represents genocide,” UC-Riverside student Edith Macias told the school’s student life office in a video recorded by the victim, Matthew Vitale. “Genocide of a bunch of people. And look at what he’s wearing, in front of a group of people.”
Macias allegedly stole the Make America Great Again hat on Sept. 27, when Vitale showed up proudly displaying the cap at a school conference.
“You stole my property, my Make America Great Again hat,” Vitale said in the video. “She took my hat. This belongs to me. I bought it and she took it from me. It is mine. …
“You do not get to take other people’s property that is legally theirs in this country.”
“Man, f**k your laws, alright,” Macias shot back. “Do you have any conscious?”
Vitale explained to school officials that he was wearing the hat when Macias physically grabbed it off his head, and insisted he has “a freedom of speech to wear this hat.”
“Your freedom of speech is genocide, homeboy,” Macias argued. “I swear to God I wish I could burn this shit.”
Vitale repeatedly demanded that Macias “give it back,” and she repeatedly refused, crumpling the red hat in her fist as she lectured her classmate.
“Make America great again? It was never f**king great,” she yelled. “Never.”
“I stole your property? Your ancestors stole this land, mother**ker.”
After Macias’ lengthy tirade about Vitale’s alleged “privilege,” school officials convinced Macias to turn the hat over to them. Two campus police officers later intervened and Vitale eventually received his property back.
Vitale pressed for criminal charges against Macias, and the Riverside County District Attorney’s office recently authorized a misdemeanor against her for petty theft. Her next court appearance is scheduled for March, Fox News reports.
Ironically, the incident sparked College Republicans in Southern California to launch “MAGA Mondays,” which encouraged other Trump supporters to wear their MAGA hats in a show of solidarity.
“I do, very proudly, wear my MAGA hat,” Vitale said.
Vitale, the Deputy Southern Region Vice Chair of the California College Republicans, told Fox News his intent in pursuing charges against Macias had little to do with her political views.
“I’m not doing this to be punitive or see her rot in jail,” he said. “I want people my age to realize that things like this aren’t tolerated in America. We just want to have our rights guaranteed and that’s what it’s all about.”
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