Stephen Ross, the billionaire owner of the Miami Dolphins and the Soulcycle franchise among other ventures, has come under fire for his upcoming fundraiser for President Donald Trump. Ross has answered the growing wave of criticism in a statement that doesn’t exactly denounce the views held by Trump.

New York Post reports:

Ross is the chairman of Related Companies, which is the parent company of both Equinox and Soul Cycle. Tickets for his Trump fundraiser event range from $5,600 to $250,000 according to the Washington Post.

Attendees who pay top dollar will get a lunch, a photo and private roundtable conversation with Trump.

Both Soul Cycle and Equinox, however, have developed a customer base filled with the kind of young urban professionals who are not usually counted among Trump’s base.

Equinox, for instance, has recently been lauded for its support of causes such as the “Life’s a Ball” pride campaign, which in June honored the transgender community.

Activist and actor Wilson Cruz launched a Change.org campaign and wrote, “We joined this gym because we believed it shared our values. We believed it was a safe space for people like us.”

In a statement, Ross pushed back at his critics.

“I have known Donald Trump for 40 years, and while we agree on some issues, we strongly disagree on many others and I have never been bashful about expressing my opinions,” Ross said. “I have been, and will continue to be, an outspoken champion of racial equality, inclusion, diversity, public education and environmental sustainability, and I have and will continue to support leaders on both sides of the aisle to address these challenges.”

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Photo: Getty

Source: HipHopWired.com

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