Humans of New York photographer calls Trump 'hateful'

A scathing open letter to US republican presidential nominee Donald Trump by renowned photojournalist Brandon Stanton has gone viral on social media, with more than 1.6 million likes on Facebook.

Stanton, the founder of blog and best-selling book Humans of New York which features portraits of everyday people and their quotes, wrote that opposing Trump is no longer a matter of politics, but a moral stance.

The letter, written on HONY’s Facebook page, has amassed nearly one million shares. Hillary Clinton was among the high-profile figures who liked the post.

"Over the last two years I have conducted extensive interviews with hundreds of Muslims, chosen at random, on the streets of Iran, Iraq, and Pakistan," said Stanton.

"I’ve also interviewed hundreds of Syrian and Iraqi refugees across seven different countries. And I can confirm— the hateful one is you."

“I’ve watched you retweet racist images. I’ve watched you retweet racist lies. I’ve watched you take 48 hours to disavow white supremacy."

“I’ve watched you joyfully encourage violence, and promise to ‘pay the legal fees’ of those who commit violence on your behalf. I’ve watched you advocate the use of torture and the murder of terrorists’ families. I’ve watched you gleefully tell stories of executing Muslims with bullets dipped in pig blood.”

“You are a man who has encouraged prejudice and violence in the pursuit of personal power."

The letter was widely received not just by US citizens but people all over the world.

“Thank you for raising the voice against his blatant racism and representing the true feelings of every Muslim around the globe!” Ali Ibrahim said. “With love from Pakistan (where you are welcome always.)”

Another commenter jokingly wondered if Stanton could take up the mantle of US presidency.

“Is it too late to start your own campaign, Brandon?” Eleanor Barker asked. “I don’t care about age minimums – almost all the current politicians already act like toddlers.”

Stanton condemned Trump’s call in December for banning all Muslims from entering the country, calling him “the hateful one”.

“You are not a ‘unifier,’” Stanton ended. “You are not ‘presidential.’”

“Though your words will no doubt change over the next few months, you will always remain who you are.”