Two men were killed and another injured after trying to protect Muslim women from being harassed on a tram in Oregon, triggering calls for Donald Trump to speak out against racism.

A man armed with a knife hurled racial abuse at two women at the Hollywood Transit tram station in Portland on Friday before he fatally stabbed two of the three men who tried to intervene.

Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, of Portland, was charged on Saturday by police for aggravated murder, second-degree intimidation, attempted aggravated murder and being a felon in possession of a restricted firearm.

“President Trump must speak out personally against the rising tide of Islamophobia and other forms of bigotry and racism in our nation,” said Nihad Awad, national executive director of the Council on American-Islamic relations.

“Only a strong statement from the nation’s leader will send a message to bigots that such acts of violence targeting racial, ethnic or religious minorities are unacceptable,” he added.