NASCAR star Dale Earnhardt Jr.: My ancestors were refugees – Charlotte Observer

As expected, President Donald Trump’s executive order barring citizens of seven Muslim nations from entering the United States has generated a hailstorm of social media posts.

NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. joined in late Saturday night with a post expressing empathy for refugees facing hardships.

Earnhardt tweeted this his own ancestors left Europe centuries ago to escape religious persecution.

In a tweet to Twitter user @GelarBudidarma, who identifies himself as a Muslim “mostly from” Bandung, Indonesia, Earnhardt wrote: “my fam immigrated from Germany in 1700s escaping religious persecution. America is created by immigrants.”

Earnhardt’s Twitter page has more than 1.9 million followers. Several Twitter users responded directly to the tweet from the popular driver – he’s been voted NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver a record 13 times. Here’s a sampling.

German roots

It’s not surprising that Earnhardt sees a link between his ancestors and current events.

According to USA Today, Earnhardt developed a passion for genealogy and exploring his family roots in 2012. The driver even proposed to his wife, Amy, on a trip to Germany to research his family tree in 2015.

Earnhardt popped the question in a church where his ancestors prayed more than 10 generations ago in the tiny town of Illesheim.

Earnhardt said he wanted a special place to propose and no other spot was “good enough or special enough for her.”

Amy Earnhardt (nee Reimann) posted a photo of the couple inside the church on Twitter.