Racist Comments Interrupt U.S. Rep. Hayes' Virtual Event

NEWTOWN, CT — A Zoom campaign event held by U.S. Rep Jahana Hayes was interrupted by racist comments Monday night.

"So sorry to Newtown who had to endure this zoom bombing episode," Hayes tweeted.

Hayes shared a screenshot of some comments on Twitter. One commenter referred to Hayes by a racist slur. Derogatory music was also played, Hayes said.

"This behavior is being normalized! We can ALL choose not to accept it. Please vote on Nov 3rd," she tweeted.

Newtown First Selectman Dan Rosenthal said he was on the event went the incident happened. He said he felt uncomfortable and angry after what he heard, but was amazed that Hayes didn't let the incident interrupt the rest of the discussion.

"Our politics may be sharply divided, but our common decency should unite us," he said in a statement. "Racism has no home anywhere and if we do not speak out in disgust when it happens to a high profile individual, who will speak out when it happens to our neighbors, our friends or, most importantly our children?"

Hayes, a Democrat, is running for a second term in Connecticut's 5th Congressional District. The district covers the northwest portion of the state, including Newtown. She is the first Black woman to represent a Connecticut congressional district.

Hayes is a Waterbury native and was a social studies teacher at John F. Kennedy High School in Waterbury before winning the congressional seat in 2018. She won the 2016 National Teacher of the Year award from the Council of Chief State School Officers.