American Conservative activist Candace Owens has been condemned for using a laughing emoji in a tweet about the New Zealand mosque massacre after the attacker named her as an ‘influence’ in his manifesto.
A gunman murdered 49 people and wounded dozens in the terror attack at two mosques in the city of Christchurch. The suspect has been named as 28-year-old Australian man Brenton Tarrant.
In a warped 74-page manifesto published online, he names right-wing personalities as inspiration for carrying out the shooting.
He cites Ms Owens as the “person who influenced me above all”.
Ms Owens was quick to dismiss the claims, posting “LOL!” on Twitter alongside a laughing face emoji.
She added: “FACT: I’ve never created any content espousing my views on the 2nd Amendment or Islam.
“'The Left pretending I inspired a mosque massacre in...New Zealand because I believe black America can do it without government hand outs is the reachiest reach of all reaches!! LOL!'”
Twitter users condemned her for trivialising the mass shooting.
One wrote: “Is it really appropriate for you to be tweeting things like this right now? Seriously?”
New Zealand: Christchurch shootings - In pictures
“What the f*** are you laughing about,” added another. Another suggested: “Maybe a little less laughing considering the death toll?”
One Twitter user described her response as “disgustingly callous” while another suggested she should “show some grace… or dignity... or compassion..."
Some also share tweets Ms Owens has previously posted which warned “Europe will fall and become a Muslim majority by 2050” and telling European countries to “defend your culture”.
In his manifesto, the attacker describes anti-immigrant motives, saying the victims were a "large group of invaders" who he says "seek to occupy my peoples lands and ethnically replace my own people (sic)".
The manifesto cited "white genocide", a term typically used by racist groups to refer to immigration and the growth of minority populations, as his motivation.
