On a drizzly lunch hour in Bothell, WA I joined a little more than 100 other people to stand on a busy corner to protest Trump’s policy of putting refugee children and adults in separate concentration camps. I learned after the fact that a much larger protest formed in downtown Seattle in front of the Federal Building. It gives me some hope that more people are taking action against the fascism sweeping our country.
People who are coming here from South American countries, fleeing violence, are having their children ripped from their arms and placed in concentration camps. Recent tours of these horrific camps have found the children malnourished, forced to sleep on concrete floors, and told to drink water from the toilets if they’re thirsty. The findings also found 900 children in cages designed to hold no more than 250. Babies who aren’t toilet trained are not even given diapers. Children as young as eight years old are forced to care for infants and toddlers. This inhumane treatment of migrants caused the organization Move On to call for massive protests on the afternoon of July 2. The Bothell protest was the one closest to me.
As mentioned, about 100 men, women and children lined four corners on this busy intersection where two major highways converge. A young woman with a megaphone led chants of, Love not hate, make America great; America has nothing to fear, Immigrants are welcome here; no hate, no fear, refugees are welcome here, and, no justice, no peace, no racist police. Several motorists honked in support as they drove past. Some gave a thumbs up sign. It seemed like most motorists honking their support were truck drivers. The prize for being the most creative was a woman dressed as the Statue of Liberty with a big tear drop under one eye. Some people held signs with Bible quotes condemning the behavior of keeping children in concentration camps.
The young woman with the megaphone yelled, Donald Trump, if you’re listening, I want you to know we will hold you accountable. Close the camps now. Of course if Trump were listening, it would make no difference. My training in the field of psychology has diagnosed Trump as a sociopath. He is happiest when he’s causing others to suffer. Making children suffer brings him great euphoria. When he receives wide spread backlash for his actions, he blames it on someone else. Further, while his supporters claim they are pro-life, justifying the draconian laws forcing women to carry unwanted babies to term, they shed no tears for the lives lost in Trump’s custody. Trump feels nothing for the lives lost either.
Not since the internment of Japanese citizens have we seen such reprehensible behavior from the government of the United States. We didn’t separate families then and this action is considered a huge black mark on our history. We separated children from their parents when we forcibly took Native children and put them in schools to teach them the European way. History will look unfavorably on the Trump administration. My hope is for the name Trump to become synonymous with Hitler – to evoke the same response as the name Hitler. This is already happening world-wide. The fact that between 30 to 40% still support Donald Trump and look upon him favorably makes the United States the largest terrorist operation on the planet and I for one will not remain silent while my country becomes another Nazi ,Germany.
– Photos property of Holly Homan, all rights reserved.
