Univision has ended its business relationship with the Miss Universe Organization in light of part-owner Donald Trump's "recent, insulting remarks about Mexican immigrants," the network has announced.
Trump, who co-owns the Miss Universe Organization in a joint venture with NBCUniversal, has received widespread criticism for what many have deemed to be racist comments directed at Mexicans during his candidacy declaration speech.
"When do we beat Mexico at the border?" asked Trump. "They're laughing at us, at our stupidity. And now they are beating us economically. They are not our friend, believe me. But they're killing us economically."
He added, "The U.S. has become a dumping ground for everybody else's problems. When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. They're not sending you. They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people."
"It's coming from more than Mexico. It's coming from all over South and Latin America, and it's coming probably from the Middle East," he continued.
On Thursday, Univision said its entertainment division has chosen to end the company's business relationship with the Miss Universe Organization, based on Trump's comments.
"At Univision, we see first-hand the work ethic, love for family, strong religious values and the important role Mexican immigrants and Mexican-Americans have had and will continue to have in building the future of our country," the company said, The Wrap reports. "We will not be airing the Miss USA pageant on July 12 or working on any other projects tied to the Trump Organization."
Univision president and CEO Randy Falco reportedly made the decision to break ties with Trump after considering the views of both his Spanish-speaking audience and his employee base, which is 80 percent Hispanic.
Univision is not alone in its criticism of Trump; on Wednesday, Latin performer J Balvin canceled his scheduled performance at the beauty event in protest of the Republican presidential nominee's remarks.
"It was going to be my first performance on national [mainstream] television," Balvin told Billboard.
"We're talking about our roots, our culture, our values," he said. "This isn't about being punitive, but about showing leadership through social responsibility. His comments weren't just about Mexicans, but about all Latins in general."
Balvin also reportedly severed ties with the Miss USA pageant. "I think music is to have fun. It's for people to have a good time with. I'm no savior and I'm no Robin Hood," he said. "But in this case, I feel totally comfortable and responsible with my decision."
But despite the backlash he has received, Trump has not backed down, taking to Twitter to hit back at his critics.
"Mexican gov doesn't want me talking about terrible border situation & horrible trade deals. Forcing Univision to get me to stop- no way!" he said in one of several tweets.
In another tweet, he wrote, "Univision wants to back out of signed @MissUniverse contract because I exposed the terrible trade deals that the U.S. makes with Mexico."
Later on Thursday, he tweeted that he "loved Mexico," but not the "unfair trade deals that the US so stupidly makes with them. Really bad for US jobs, only good for Mexico."
