By Emmanuel T. Erediano
emmanuel@mvariety.com
Variety News Staff
A GROUP of local residents, called the Voice of Freedom, staged a demonstration on Monday at the San Jose intersection on Beach Road to protest President Donald Trump’s “insanity.”
“I truly see that he is insane,” said Jeff Race, one of the protesters. He said the demonstration was in response to what they view as Trump “escalating violence.” Race noted that since it was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, it was appropriate for them to become the “voice of freedom” on that day.
Race described the president as a “psychopath with dementia” who seeks to eliminate his enemies and become America’s first dictator. “The president,” he said, “has established a paramilitary force that resorts to beating people. The situation Trump has created in the U.S. mainland parallels Nazi Germany during Hitler’s reign in the 1930s. Only, Trump is moving faster than Hitler did.”
Race fears Trump will not stop. “I think his end game is to start a civil war in the U.S., and that would solve all his problems,” he said.
Retired educator Ambrose Bennett said the protesters aim to keep MLK’s dream and the American dream alive. “We are protesting because we believe Trump’s actions are undermining both dreams, which is just horrific,” he said.
Bennett added that people in the CNMI are already feeling the impact of Trump’s policies. “We’re not getting the same amount of federal funding we used to receive. That’s just the start. It’s only a matter of time before what’s happening on the U.S. mainland happens here — or worse,” he said.
Protester Heidi Yelin said they follow news from the U.S. mainland about ICE arresting American citizens, often targeting those who don’t “look like they belong.” “I don’t want people to be afraid to speak their minds,” she said. “We don’t all have the same opinions, and that’s fine, but violence against citizens is never acceptable.”
Veteran Tom Flowers, who served 10 years in the U.S. Air Force, said the group represents people who were once proud of America. “Now, we can’t believe what it has turned into in just one year,” he said.
“I used to be proud to call myself an American, but now I am hiding my head in shame,” Flowers added. “I was in the Air Force for 10 years, and I just can’t believe it.”
