Rep. Al Green protested President Donald Trump just before the State of the Union address Tuesday, waving a “Black people aren’t apes” sign as the president entered the House chamber.
The Texas Democrat was then escorted out of the chamber as Trump began his address.
As he was being escorted, Green, 78, waved his sign at the Republican side of the aisle, where Rep. Troy Nehls, a fellow Texan, tried to snatch it, according to NBC News.
Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg via Getty Images Rep. Al Green, a Democrat from Texas, center, holds a sign reading “Black People Aren’t Apes” during the State of the Union address in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 24, 2026.
It’s the second straight year Green has been escorted out of the chamber during Trump’s State of the Union. Last year, Green was escorted out after standing up and shaking his cane at Trump.
“Judging from the expression on his face, he got the message. He saw it, he got the message,” Green said of Trump when speaking with reporters after his removal, adding that he hopes, “others will let him have a similar message so that he would discontinue this behavior.
“Now, there are people who believe that I should not take a stand such as this,” Green said. “There are others who have taken stands, and they, too, have been vilified. Dr. [Martin Luther King] King went to jail for taking a stand. Rosa Parks went to jail for taking a stand. Sometimes you have to take a stand.”
Green’s sign was in apparent reference to the president’s repost on his Truth Social account on Feb. 6, where former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, were depicted as primates in a jungle.
The post was eventually deleted from Trump’s feed, but not after receiving widespread backlash from civil rights leaders to veteran Republicans, among others.
Former President Obama commented on the repost on Feb. 15 during an interview with YouTube podcaster Brian Tyler Cohen, citing Trump and his administration as “a clown show.”
Green is currently contesting a hot primary race in the newly drawn 18th District in Houston with fellow Democrat Rep. Christian Menefee.
The Associated Press and NBC News contributed to this report.
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