Eyes on 2020 An in-depth look at the candidates vying for the highest office in the land in 2020. Prev Next View All

“This is the most divisive, the most xenophobic, the most racist, the most nativist, the most Islamophobic president we have ever had.” — Beto O’Rourke


The Exonerated Five are in the spotlight following the release of Ava DuVernay’s Netflix series, When They See Us. Donald Trump, who took out full-page ads in New York City newspapers calling for the death penalty for the innocent teenagers, still refuses to apologize for participating in the miscarriage of justice that ruined the lives of five black and brown boys.

In an interview with The Root senior reporter Terrell Jermaine Starr, 2020 presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke called for Trump to issue an apology to not only The Exonerated Five but also to Barack Obama for challenging his citizenship, as well as the undocumented children and families being held in detention centers at the U.S. border.


Watch the full interview here.