Black Lives Matter, NAACP silent in wake of 'Uncle Tim' Twitter trend

Some prominent liberal groups, including Black Lives Matter and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), haven't weighed in on the "Uncle Tim" Twitter insults lobbed at Sen. Tim Scott Wednesday night.

Scott, R-S.C., the only Black Republican in the Senate, delivered Republicans' response to President Biden's address to a joint session of Congress.

The senator, who is behind a push for police reform legislation and had a bill on the issue blocked via filibuster by Senate Democrats last year, made headlines by declaring "America is not a racist country."

"I've also experienced a different kind of intolerance," Scott also said. "I get called Uncle Tom and the N-word by progressives, by liberals. Just last week, a national newspaper suggested my family's poverty was actually a privilege."

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Those comments and other elements of his speech led many liberals to write Twitter posts changing the racial insult "Uncle Tom" to "Uncle Tim" in reference to the senator. 

Some Black people used the term, including left-wing activists Bree Newsome and Tariq Nasheed, as well as commentator Touré.

But some White progressives also used the term, including television personality Scott Nevins, who later apologized.

The term was trending for hours before Twitter eventually blocked it Thursday morning, saying the move was "in line with our policies on Trends... to promote healthy conversations on Twitter." 

Republicans widely condemned the use of the term to refer to Scott. And Scott himself addressed the comments on "Fox & Friends" Thursday morning. 

"Intolerance so often comes from the left with words like 'Uncle Tim' and the 'n-word' being used against me," Scott said. "And last night what was trending in social media was 'Uncle Tim,' and they doubled down on this concept of liberal oppression. It is stunning in 2021 that those who speak about ending discrimination want to end it by more discrimination."

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"The left has... doubled down that they are going to, not attack my policies, but they're literally attacking the color of my skin," he added. "You can't step out of your lane according to the liberal elite left."

But the NAACP and Black Lives Matter, two groups whose mission is to fight discrimination, have not made any statements on the attacks against Scott. Neither group responded to requests for comment from Fox News on Thursday. 

The only apparent public reaction to Scott's speech from either group was a Wednesday night tweet from the NAACP that was critical of Scott's comment that "America is not a racist country." 

"America is not a racist country!?!" the group posted. "@TimScottSC we should have a Word or a Word of Prayer!"

Scott, who is seen by some as a potential 2024 presidential contender, was widely praised by Republicans for his Wednesday response. Those on the right are likely to continue to discuss Scott's speech and the Democrats' reaction to it as Congress moves ahead with discussions on police reform. 

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New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Steve Stepanek on Thursday said comments directed against Scott by "the left" are "outrageous." 

Stepanek continued to say "they’re looking for ways to poke holes in his life and take away from him what he’s accomplished. That’s just unacceptable to me and I think Americans are getting sick of it."

Biden on Wednesday asked Congress to put a police reform bill on his desk by next month, ahead of the first anniversary of George Floyd's death. 

Fox News' Paul Steinhauser and Brandon Gillespie contributed to this report.