Representative Al Green was escorted out of the House chamber during President Donald Trump's State of the Union address after holding up a sign reading "Black people aren't apes!" The 78-year-old Texas Democrat was removed just minutes into the speech for the protest.

Green, a senior Democrat known for his repeated attempts to impeach Trump, told CNN he wanted the president to see the message. "I told him, Black people are not apes, and for him to do what he did was racist," Green said. The protest came exactly one week before Green faces a challenging primary battle against another Democratic incumbent.

House Democratic leaders had explicitly warned members against bringing signs or creating disruptions during the address, fearing such spectacles would distract from Trump at a politically vulnerable moment. Green maintained he wasn't defying party leadership but making a point about racism. The incident follows Trump's earlier deletion of a racist video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes, which he refused to apologize for, blaming a staffer for the offensive content.