The wife of the American president was preparing to embark on a visit to calm tensions at a center for migrant children, after weeks of controversy. It failed.
A well-thought-out PR stunt or a clumsy move? The jacket worn on Thursday, June 21, by the first lady of the United States during a visit to the border with Mexico, and in particular to a center for migrant children, caused astonishment.
Melania Trump flew to McAllen, Texas, wearing a khaki jacket from the Zara brand, with this message written on the back: "I really don't care, do u?" ("I don't care at all, do you?"). An ambiguous message after the outcry caused by the recent separations of families at the border between Mexico and the United States linked to the "zero tolerance" policy applied by her husband Donald Trump.
When she arrived, the first lady was no longer wearing the jacket in question, but social media was already ablaze.
“This is not a joke. Melania Trump wore a jacket that said “I really don’t care, do u?” to visit child detention centers. I am speechless,” tweeted Zac Petkanas, a communicator affiliated with the Democratic Party.
On Twitter, questions multiplied as did the most diverse explanations, some wondering if it was a message to the public or... to her husband.
“No hidden message”
Others compared this phrase to the reactions of other “first ladies” to recent controversies over immigration policy:
During the day, in response to the first lady, t-shirts printed with an ironic slogan “I really DO care” were even put on sale on online stores.
Melania Trump's spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham, assured that "there was no hidden message". "It's just a jacket (...). After today's important visit to Texas, I hope the media will not choose to focus on her wardrobe," she said.
But Donald Trump himself contradicted her, saying in a tweet that his wife had actually wanted to talk about "Fake News". "Melania has learned how dishonest [the media] is and she really doesn't care!" he said.
As a snub, the first lady in any case got off the plane that brought her back to Washington in the late afternoon with the famous jacket, and was still wearing it when she arrived at the White House.
The controversy ultimately overshadowed the main focus of the visit, which focused on the separation of families who entered the United States illegally after her husband changed his mind, signing an executive order that did not, however, address the issue of the more than 2,300 minors torn from their parents since his “zero tolerance” policy was implemented in early May.
“They are afraid without their parents,” Mrs. Trump said during a roundtable at the McAllen migrant center. “I am here to learn more” about the center “and I also want to ask you how I can help (...) to reunite them with their families as quickly as possible,” she added.
