Kenneth Frazier, CEO of the pharmaceutical company Merck, announced his resignation early Monday from President Trump’s American Manufacturing Council.
In his statement, Frazier says he felt it was his responsibly to take a stand against “intolerance and extremism.”
Frazier’s decision comes just days after violence broke out in Charlottesville, Virginia before a rally for white nationalists and neo-Nazis at Emancipation Park was scheduled to take place. During the chaos that ensued, a man drove a car through protesters, killing one woman and injuring at least 20 others.
Trump’s response to Charlottesville on Saturday sparked a backlash when he suggested “many sides” were to blame. He was criticized for not singling out white nationalists or white supremacists.
"We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides, on many sides,” he said. “No matter our color, creed, religion, our political party, we are all Americans first.”
However, upon hearing the news of Frazier’s resignation, he quickly condemned him on Twitter.
Frazier is the only African American CEO on Trump’s manufacturing council. In June, CEOs Elon Musk of Tesla and Robert Iger of Disney resigned after Trump withdrew from the Paris climate accord. Six members of Trump’s HIV advisory council also resigned in protest, stating he has zero awareness of the impact of HIV.
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