The VERY White House: West Wing releases photo of spring interns posing with Trump showing only FIVE out of 91 are ethnic minorities
- The White House on Friday released a photo showing its spring interns
- Out of 91, all appear to be white except for about five non-white interns
- That is a lower proportion of non-white interns than were seen in Obama's terms
The White House has drawn criticism for after releasing a photo showing that out of 91 spring interns, only about five appear non-white.
In the photo released on Friday, President Donald Trump smiles amid the gathering of interns, who will do various tasks including research, fielding inquiries, writing memos and staffing events.
The demographics of the group are roughly similar to Trump's prior groups of interns.
Photographs of former President Barack Obama's interns showed more non-white, and particularly more black, interns.
The White House has drawn criticism for after releasing this photo on Friday showing that out of 91 spring interns, only about five appear non-white
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America's population is roughly 61 per cent non-Hispanic white. The new intern photo appears to be about 95 percent non-Hispanic white.
Internships are filled through open applications, meaning that the demographics of the interns could be a reflection of the applicants.
Exit poll data shows that just eight percent of black voters selected Trump in the presidential election.
Still, the photo drew backlash and scorn on Twitter for being 'too white'.
'Diversity this ain’t,' said Philip Crowther, a White House correspondent for France24.
'I haven’t seen so many white people pose for a photo in the White House as in the White House Interns photo since the Olympic hockey teams visited,' another Twitter user wrote.
Trump poses with his outgoing summer interns in July of 2017. About 126 interns are seen in the photo, of whom perhaps about five are non-white
This is Obama's 2009 fall intern group. At least a dozen interns appear non-white
Other non-white interns are seen in the group photo from Obama's 2012 spring intern class
It is not the first time that Trump's intern photos have stirred racial controversy.
In December, one intern made an 'OK' sign with his hand instead of a thumbs up as the rest of the group did.
Some claimed it was a secret symbol for 'white power', which the intern denied.
The White House Internship Program is a public service leadership program that offers young people the opportunity to gain professional experience and build leadership skills, according to the White House website.
'This hands-on program is designed to mentor and cultivate today’s young leaders, strengthen their understanding of the Executive Office, and prepare them for future public service opportunities,' the description reads
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