At the end of last night’s season premiere of The Simpsons, the animated characters reappeared on screen in a serious, silent tag about the real-world crisis unfolding in Puerto Rico. A five-second still image depicted the Springfield cast holding up the Puerto Rican flag in support of the Hurricane-ravaged island, while the mother Marge held up a sign that read “UNIDO,” which is Spanish for “united.”
This comes after criticism of President Trump’s delayed and unsympathetic responses to the crisis occurring on American soil. Carmen Yulin Cruz, mayor of Puerto Rico’s capital city of San Juan, made a public plea over the weekend for federal aid, while blasting Trump and his administration for a lack of response.
"We are dying, and you are killing us with the inefficiency and the bureaucracy," said Mayor Cruz. "I am done being polite. I am done being politically correct. I am mad as hell."
Trump went on the defensive on Twitter:
The Mayor of San Juan, who was very complimentary only a few days ago, has now been told by the Democrats that you must be nasty to Trump.— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1506770354.0
...Such poor leadership ability by the Mayor of San Juan, and others in Puerto Rico, who are not able to get their workers to help. They....— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1506770776.0
...want everything to be done for them when it should be a community effort. 10,000 Federal workers now on Island doing a fantastic job.— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1506770987.0
Soon after, Trump proceeded to have a multiple-tweet meltdown, attacking the media as "fake news."
Mayor Cruz brought the focus back to the people of Puerto Rico. “The goal is one: saving lives. This is the time to show our ‘true colors.’ We cannot be distracted by anything else," she tweeted.
The goal is one: saving lives. This is the time to show our "true colors". We cannot be distracted by anything else. https://t.co/7PAINk19xM— Carmen Yulín Cruz (@Carmen Yulín Cruz)1506774329.0
After the show aired last night, The Simpsons tweeted the same image as the tag seen at the end of the premiere, which included the social handles of charities like Unicef, Save the Children, and One America Appeal that are helping with disaster relief.
How you can help... #TheSimpsons https://t.co/QE73mTbyLK— The Simpsons (@The Simpsons)1506904325.0
Aside from a health and food crisis, Puerto Rico faces at least the next few months without power.
#PuertoRico being told to adjust to no electricity for next few months. This is what modern colonialism looks like.… https://t.co/BQiYhMdN8u— Alex Shams (@Alex Shams)1506030913.0
Credit: The Simpsons