In a city that has a longstanding majority of democratic or left-leaning voters, a Donald Trump campaign office sprouted in an unlikely place: Cambodia Town in Long Beach.
I walked into a building with few windows around 5 p.m. on Friday and made my way to the second story, as directed by two women at the front door.
The campaign office looked hyper-patriotic and had Trump’s name plastered on nearly everything.
Signs and posters reading “Build A Wall” and “Make America Great Again” were abundant and scattered throughout the building. The copious amounts of propaganda assured me that I was in the right place. Pictures of Trump adorning the office helped remind me what the candidate looked like, in case I forgot during my visit.
The passionate loyalty supporters have for Trump’s campaign was a daunting reminder for what I was in for. Trump has been labeled xenophobic, racist and sexist by media news outlets and opponents. These allegations, albeit harsh, are justifiable due to Trump’s past comments.
However, the people present in his office were more optimistic and jubilant than I anticipated.
Los Angeles County Regional Director of the Trump campaign Rachel Gunther and County Latino Coalition Representative Victor Blanco were more than happy to inform me on matters such as upcoming events; however, I felt they were doing nothing more than avoiding the controversies that Trump has dug himself into throughout the election.
Despite the jovial mood both Blanco and Gunther seemed to be in, they both abruptly declined to answer any questions regarding Trump’s recent sexual assault allegations.
The rejection almost stonewalled the conversation which was disheartening but they both masked the awkward moment with talk about “real issues” and upcoming Trump campaign events. I suppose topics like misogyny and sexual assault aren’t “real” enough for these supporters.
“I won’t address that.” Gunther said, repeatedly while the other Trump supporters seemed to relish the chance to answer my “controversial” questions. Several of the questions I had were in regard to a Clinton presidency and Trump’s sexual assault accusations.
However, the conversation with the supporters took a sinister turn when they unearthed their bigoted views of Muslims.
Supporter Michael Paulus and a woman who only wanted to be identified as Katherine went so far as to claim that under a Clinton presidency, the Islamic State would successfully take over the country.
For a moment, I thought Katherine was joking but the urgency in her concerned (yet friendly) tone of voice convinced me otherwise.
“The Muslims don’t have abortions, they might kill a few women while they’re pregnant, but they don’t have abortions,” Katherine said. “They want to populate and that’s one of their plans on the Islamic state is to take over; by overpopulating they can take over without firing a shot [but win] by the numbers.”
The other supporters in the room silently agreed, creating a real sense of panic within me. Although not every Trump supporter may think the exact same thing about Muslims, I’ve concluded that an opinion similar to Katherine’s is popular among many supporters.
Paulus was quick to speak up about the constant attacks to Trump’s character and reaffirm why Clinton could not enter office.
“He who is without sin, cast the first stone. Trump is not a perfect person but Hillary is far, far from perfect,” he said.
The other supporters in the room agreed as he went on about how the “media” isn’t asking Hillary tough questions about her husband’s affairs by painting a mental picture of what the country is “becoming.”
“When people ask me about all the things being said about Trump, I would say, why don’t you ask why the Democratic party has created the racial divide in this country? Or how come the news doesn’t cover all of the things WikiLeaks has released on Clinton?” Paulus said.
Paulus continued to divert the conversation in order to further attack Clinton, while also trying to make the Democratic party seem like the real racist party.
After hearing so many bigoted opinions from Trump supporters on Islam, I felt a whole new level of fear for the safety of Muslims in this country.
According to research based consulting company Gallup, when Trump made his controversial statement that Muslims should be barred from entering the country, his net favorability continued to increase because these people were giving their support.
This blatantly xenophobic theory that Muslims are trying to take over the U.S. would have been something I would expect from a loud, insultive person in a bar –the kind of frustrated drunk who always interrupts you while you’re attempting to counter their intolerant views.
Yet, I wasn’t in a bar and Katherine wasn’t rude at all. She was an extremely polite, older white woman wearing a bright red sweater with a Trump/Pence 2016 button and a dainty bandana around her neck. She was rather friendly, which astonished me — how could someone so articulate and kind come to such a malevolent conclusion about Muslims?
Although Katherine and Paulus seemed well-spoken and prepared with research, they were both terribly misguided to the point where they were convinced that the religious rights of Christians were most at risk in the U.S. Even objective evidence proving a spike in hate crimes towards Muslims couldn’t convince them otherwise.
Trump’s grassroots-style campaign has gained so much support from a solidified base that won’t stop backing Trump, no matter what bigoted remarks the candidate has made.
These supporters weren’t insane tin-hat wearing folks, but calm and collected in telling me their insane views toward the “threats” that face this country.
They already support a candidate who has openly suggested barring Muslims from entering the country, as well as keeping a tracking database on them. What happens if Trump suggests internment or confiscation of their guns? I don’t realistically see these supporters putting up any opposition toward the candidate, but instead welcome unconstitutional advances for the sake of keeping the country “safe.”