The digital Democratic National Convention kicked off this week with a pre-recorded video of “America’s most impactful community leaders” reading the preamble to America’s Constitution. The various participants, mostly Democratic politicians and party activists, might be alarmed to learn that their segment featured Donna Hylton, a 55-year-old Jamaican woman convicted for the kidnapping, rape, torture, and murder of a 62-year-old Long Island real estate broker in 1986.

Just yesterday, reporters bristled after President Trump refused to disavow Qanon, an online conspiracy group suggesting that the Democratic party shields rapists and pedophiles for political purposes. This makes the choice to include Hylton alongside Joe Biden ill-timed and highlights the recent pattern of Democratic groups brushing off rape allegations and even convictions.

• ·       Democrat activist and mega donor Ed Buck infamously managed to maintain good standing in various Democratic groups despite a succession of gay black homeless men dying of forced drug overdoses in his West Hollywood home until Buck was charged with various sexual and drug crimes by a federal prosecutor.
• ·       The morning of Bill Clinton’s DNC speech, pictures surfaced of the former president receiving sensual massages by a victim of deceased pedophile and rapist Jeffrey Epstein during a trip on Epstein’s private jet dubbed “Lolita Express”.
• ·       Joe Biden himself has been accused of sexual assault by Tara Reade, a former staff assistant who worked for Biden during his time in the Senate.

Before receiving accolades for her work as an “impactful community leader,” Donna Hylton and her gang of prostitutes had drugged real estate broker Thomas Vigliarolo, brought him to their Harlem apartment, and subjected him to a three week torture session which included starvation, beatings, burnings, and various forms of sexual torture leading to a gruesome murder. Hylton had raped Vigliarolo with a three-foot metal rod, later laughing it off, quipping “he was a homo anyway.” Hylton had demanded ransom from the victim’s friend, planning on spending her cut on professional photos to launch a career in modeling. She was paroled in 2012, having served 26 years in prison.

Out of prison, Donna Hylton quickly found work as a Democrat activist, joining the Coalition for Women Prisoners and advocating for the early release of convicted prisoners, specifically women and minorities. She was a featured speaker at the January 2017 Women’s March and made an appearance on CGTN, China’s English language propaganda state media channel, during which she complained that women like her were vilified due to their race and gender:

The majority of prisons and jail are crowded with black and brown women because of their dehumanization. We are criminalized for our color; we are criminalized and sexualized.

There was no mention of her rape and murder crimes.

The activism industry pays well apparently. After landing a book deal for her memoir, a movie deal is in the works, though it is unclear how far along it is.

Photo credit: YouTube screen grab