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Civil rights hero from 60s takes criticism as Trump backer

In this Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016, image made from video, Clarence Henderson, a participant in the Feb. 1, 1960, sit-in at a Greensboro, N.C., Woolworth lunch counter, speaks at a campaign event in High Point, N.C., in support of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Henderson has been criticized for his stance, with many taking to Twitter to accuse him of abandoning the principles he fought so hard for more than half a century ago. (AP Photo/Alex Sanz)
In this Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016, image made from video, Clarence Henderson, a participant in the Feb. 1, 1960, sit-in at a Greensboro, N.C., Woolworth lunch counter, speaks at a campaign event in High Point, N.C., in support of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Henderson has been criticized for his stance, with many taking to Twitter to accuse him of abandoning the principles he fought so hard for more than half a century ago. (AP Photo/Alex Sanz)

By Associated Press 4 min read

HIGH POINT, N.C. (AP) – Clarence Henderson was hailed as a hero nearly 60 years ago when as a young black man he participated in a sit-in at a segregated North Carolina lunch counter.

In 2016, he is again taking a risky stand; he is supporting Donald Trump.

And he isn’t shy about it. Last month he gave the invocation at a Trump rally here, smiling as he shook the Republican candidate’s hand.

“Donald Trump is certainly not a politician, and politicians are a dime a dozen, but leaders are priceless,” Henderson said in an interview.

Trump is deeply unpopular in the black community. He has called on black voters to vote for him because “what the hell do you have to lose?” His support among blacks is less than the margin of error in some polls.