A Democratic representative was assaulted and targeted with racist remarks by a Trump supporter at one of the most popular film festivals in the U.S.
Florida Rep. Maxwell Frost, 29, said Saturday he was punched in the face at the Sundance Film Festival in an X post. Frost, who is of Puerto Rican, Lebanese, and Haitian ancestry, said the assailant told him that Donald Trump would deport him.
“Last night, I was assaulted by a man at Sundance Festival who told me that Trump was going to deport me before he punched me in the face,” he wrote. “He was heard screaming racist remarks as he drunkenly ran off. The individual was arrested and I am okay. Thank you to the venue security and Park City PD for assistance on this incident.”
“WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 28: Representative Maxwell Frost speaks as student loan borrowers and advocates gather for the People’s Rally To Cancel Student Debt During The Supreme Court Hearings On Student Debt Relief on February 28, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for People’s Rally to Cancel Student Debt )”
jemal countess
The incident reportedly occurred at a private party held in a distillery Friday. Christian Joel Young, 28, was arrested and charged with aggravated battery, assaulting an elected official, and assault, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by The Daily Beast.
Young had snuck into the distillery after being denied entry. He had allegedly made “weird” comments about Frost and his friend’s race while pulling them close. He then told Frost, “We are going to deport you and your kind.” After the congressman pushed Young away “for separation,” the assailant yelled a racial slur at Frost, punched him, and ran away, according to the affidavit.
The Daily Beast reached out to representatives for Frost, the Sundance Institute and the Park City Police Department for comment.
A Sundance Film Festival representative condemned the attack and hate speech in a statement to the Daily Beast.
“While the incident occurred at a non-Festival-affiliated event, such behavior is intolerable and against our values of upholding a welcoming and inspiring environment for all our attendees,” the Sundance spokesperson said. “The safety and security of our festival goers remains our chief concern, and our thoughts are with Congressman Frost and his continued well-being.”
Young had also reportedly engaged in an “inappropriate and racially charged” conversation with a woman at the distillery. After she disengaged him, he allegedly grabbed her shoulder and told her, “You are the kind we are going to deport.”
President Donald Trump, 79, is currently overseeing an unpopular but large-scale immigration enforcement operation across the country. Trump claims that the Department of Homeland Security is detaining and deporting the “worst of the worst.” In January, ICE detained children as young as two years old, restaurant workers, and a U.S. citizen grandfather.
After he was detained, Young was found with a Sundance pass that did not belong to him. He is being held without bail after Summit County District Court Judge Richard Mrazik determined he was a “substantial danger to any other individual or to the community, or is likely to flee the jurisdiction of the court if released on bail.”
Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL) speaks at a news conference on TikTok on March 12.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries commented on Frost’s assault on X, calling it “terrifying.”
“I am horrified by the attack on Congressman Maxwell Frost,” he posted. “Grateful that he is okay, but appalled that this terrifying assault took place. The perpetrator must be aggressively prosecuted. Hate and political violence has no place in our country, and the entire House Democratic Caucus family stands with Maxwell.”
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