Yes Cymru deletes Trump social media post following backlash

Emily Price

A Welsh independence organisation that repurposed a famous Donald Trump slogan has deleted a social media post after receiving an online backlash.

Yes Cymru published a post which read, "INDEPENDENCE WILL MAKE WALES GREAT AGAIN" to X, formerly Twitter, On Wednesday (November 6) shortly after the news broke that Trump had won the presidential election.

His victory marked a comeback for the former president who refused to accept defeat four years ago, sparked a violent insurrection at the US Capitol, was convicted of felony charges and survived two assassination attempts.

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MAGA

The famous slogan "Let's Make America Great Again" was originally coined by former president Ronald Reagan during his 1980 presidential campaign.

Trump officially trademarked the phrase after slightly altering it to read, "Make America Great Again" - often shortened to MAGA - during his successful 2016 presidential campaign.

Eight years later the campaign is still selling millions of red hats emblazoned with the slogan which has become the hallmark of US rallies attended by devoted Trump supporters.

Several academics, journalists, and commentators have branded the slogan racially charged and have regarded it as dog-whistle politics.

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Outrage

Yes Cymru deleted its variation of the catchphrase on X less than a day after it was first posted amid outrage from social media users.

Former Yes Cymru Director Ethan Jones said: "It is incredibly disappointing to see YesCymru adopting the slogan of a triumphant fascist.

"However, it is sadly not surprising. The chaotic scatter-gun spamming and eccentric messaging across their social media comms over the last 12 months has quickly undone the previous year’s hardwork on brand recovery. It is sad to see."

In an online post, Plaid Cymru Mayor of Blackwood Rhys Mills said: "A reminder that nothing says a progressive bright future like pinning our hopes on a slogan that sounds like it was scrawled on the back of a bus."

'Dark day'

Wednesday was branded a "dark day" for women and minority groups by several Welsh political figures because of Trump's vocal opposition to abortion rights and comments aimed at immigrants, Black and trans people.

Former Labour MP Beth Winter - who previously appeared as a guest speaker at a Yes Cymru rally - said the American election result was a "lesson to us all" and called for unity to oppose Trump's "racism and misogynistic rhetoric".

Plaid Cymru MS Heledd Fychan said there were "lessons for us here in Wales" about listening to those that feel marginalised.

At the other end of the political spectrum, Tory MS James Evans hailed Trump for his "unwavering commitment to supporting working people".

'Poor optics'

Online commentators say that by altering a slogan popular with Trump supporters Yes Cymru had become removed from reality.

One social media user said: "It's incredibly poor optics to alter a Trump slogan."

Another posted: "Don't think aligning with the Trump slogan is a good idea. Bin future posts with 'Make Wales Great Again' please and diolch."

Yes Cymru describes itself as a non party-political campaign for an independent Wales.

It was first formed in 2014 and officially launched on 20 February 2016 in Cardiff. In 2022 it became a private company limited by guarantee without share capital.

Last year the organisation became embroiled in a string of scandals following the departure of its Chief Executive and disagreements behind the scenes amongst board members over how membership money is spent.

A recent "independent" investigation which completely exonerated the organisation did not appear have the desired effect after questions were raised about the probe's steering panel and evidence that was disregarded.

Yes Cymru was invited to comment but did not respond.