EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — El Paso leaders are reacting to a meme video shared on President Donald Trump’s Truth Social account, which had AI images depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes.

The video, reposted by Trump’s Truth Social account, about election integrity, showed the former president and former first lady’s faces on gorilla cartoons while the song, “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” played.

The White House has since faced backlash as critics have labeled the video as overtly racist.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the reaction as “fake outrage” before the video was removed 12 hours later.

The White House later attributed the post to a staffer, according to CNN.

The video, a parody of “The Lion King,” also featured numerous Democrats as jungle animals and addressed unproven 2020 election fraud claims.

Trump later addressed the video, offering an explanation to reporters on Air Force One, stating, “I just looked at the first part it was about voter fraud, in some place, Georgia. There was a lot of voter fraud 20-20 voter fraud, and I didn’t see the whole thing… then I gave it to the people. Generally, they look at the whole thing, but I guess somebody didn’t.”

He added that he did not make a mistake and condemned the racist parts of the video.

El Paso Mayor Renard Johnson, the first Black mayor of El Paso, condemned the video in an emailed statement to KFOX14/CBS4, saying, “I’m very disturbed by the racist image shared by the President depicting a former president in a dehumanizing way. Dehumanizing anyone based on race has no place in our country. The division in this country is spreading in a deeply concerning way. We are all human beings, and we need to find common ground instead of more division. We can and must do better.”

The video also comes as Black History Month officially kicked off on Feb. 1.

In an interview with KFOX14/CBS4 on Friday, the El Paso Chapter of NAACP, one of the oldest and largest civil rights groups in America, spoke about the video, criticizing it and noting that it is the hundred-year anniversary of Black History Month.

“Unfortunately, you know we had this incident happen, and you know the fact that you know it comes from our president, the highest office within our nation, is very, very disappointing. We find it despicable especially here in 2026 in Black History Month where we’re celebrating the hundred year anniversary of Black History Month, to have something like this post, it coming from that office, it’s just very disappointing, but it goes to show kind of where our country is right now,” Carl DeWyre, president of the El Paso branch of the NAACP, said.

He added, “We stand against it. The video was very racist, no matter how you look at it, to depict any African-American as apes or gorillas is very dehumanizing and racist, and especially to depict a former president or first lady as such, it’s just unheard of.”

Meanwhile, across the nation, other leaders are also condemning the video and the White House’s response.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris criticized the White House’s explanation, writing on X, “No one believes this cover up from the White House, especially since they originally defended the post. We are all clear-eyed about who Donald Trump is and what he believes.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the only Black party leader in Congress, said in an Instagram video, “F**k Donald Trump and his vile, racist, and malignant behavior. This guy is an unhinged bottom feeder.”

Additionally, some Trump allies have also criticized the video and called for the staffer responsible to be fired.

GOP Sen. Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, also called the video racist and urged Trump to remove it.

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