[VIDEO] Students who protested Sen Rand Paul’s speech: Capitalism, tea party racist

Two students who interrupted Senator Rand Paul’s (R-Ky.) speech at a historically black college on Wednesday, with accusations of racism, told Campus Reform that they also consider the Tea Party, opponents to national health care, and the system of capitalism to be racist.

The students had rushed the stage with a banner that read “Howard University does not support white supremacy” during the Kentucky Republican’s speech.

The student protesters were immediately removed from the auditorium by police, but spoke with Campus Reform afterward to explain their reasoning.

“If you do any research on the Tea Party, on where they get their funding from, their slogans from, like a lot of their bumper stickers and stuff like that, that is all created by white nationalists,” said Howard University student Brian Menifee.

WATCH: Howard University students who protested Senator Paul’s speech claim the tea party is racist

“So, when you have somebody, a member of this Tea Party, who has funding, and has connections to white nationalists, to people who believe in the discrimination and the oppression of people of color, who are are very homophobic, that really offends us,” he added.

When asked whether he believed those who opposed national health care did so out of racism, the other banner-holder, Ahmeen Muhammad, responded “Of course.”

“You look at the Tea Party members and the majority are all either older white people ... or they’re younger white people who don’t like black folks.”

“It’s all part of a system of capitalism that continues to discriminate against marginalized people,” Menifee said. 

Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @KCTimpf