Washington, D.C. – A large trailer beset with enormous letters spelling out “TRUMP” and actors playing Melania and Barron pulled onto the National Mall while blaring patriotic standards such as “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “Yankee Doodle” this past Saturday. The people who had gathered there from all over the country cheered its arrival.
This crowd of several hundred formed a sea of red, white, and blue with their apparel, signs, and American flags for what was billed as the “Mother of All Rallies” or M.O.A.R. The name expressed the organizers ambition to bring a million attendees to this pro-Trump rally. The event also stood for the protection of “traditional American culture,” and in support of the “America First agenda,” according the organizers’ website.
While leaner in numbers than organizers expected, the crowd was high in spirit for what was promised to be the “Woodstock of American Rallies.” Penny Dare, wearing red, white, and blue pom-poms on her head and a matching tail, carried a sign that read simply, “Free Hugs!” Dare, 57, who came from Ohio, said, “I’m just here to spread the love. That’s what it’s all about. Unifying everybody to come together and love each other as a nation instead of dividing us into racist hate groups. As you can see, there are people of every color here.”
“I’m just here to spread the love.”
The mostly white crowd had a few notable exceptions, including some of its organizers and speakers. Will Johnson, 46, an African American, who came from California, helped promote the event over the past five months since its inception. “I hope this rally puts a smack in the liberals’ face, because they’re completely lying. They said this was a neo-Nazi, fascist event, but I’ve received so much love here,” said Johnson.
“I hope this rally puts a smack in the liberals’ face.”
A man gave a fist bump to Mo Rees Delk, an African American, exclaiming, “You’re an internet sensation!” A woman hugged him confessing, “I’ve been following you on YouTube!” Delk was invited to be a speaker at the event. “I’m tired of all this African American, Mexican American, stuff. We’re all Americans. Let’s come together. The media lies about what’s going on behind the scenes. They lied about what was going on in Charlottesville. They want to say that patriots are white supremacists. We are not,” said Delk, 43, who came from Wisconsin, and claims to have been a life-long Democrat prior to Trump’s presidential campaign. “One day I saw Trump saying we’ve got no time to be politically correct. It’s about focusing on real things. Man, I love that dude.”
“They want to say that patriots are white supremacists. We are not.”
This is one of the first conservative rallies since the white supremacist march in Charlottesville, which turned violent and led to the death of Heather Heyer. It also occurred in the wake of a number of controversial measures and statements by the Trump administration targeting minorities. In light of this, rally attendees sought to define themselves as distinct from white nationalists. At the event, they referred to themselves as the “Patriot Movement,” the “Liberty Movement,” and as just “nationalists” minus the “white.” Speakers on the agenda included Hamody Jasim, the Muslim American author of The Terrorist Whisperer, Marco Guiterrez, co-founder of Latinos for Trump, and Omar Navarro, a congressional candidate for California.
“We invited Democrats. We invited Republicans. We invited Independents. We invited all colors, all creeds, and all religions. Everybody is welcomed to come out and celebrate with us,” said Tommy Gunn, the event’s creator and head organizer. “You should not be attacked for your views. And the moment that we start allowing that to happen, we’re going to lose everything that we hold dear to us. So, this rally is supposed to set the bar for future rallies. It’s OK to disagree. It’s OK to have a dialogue and to debate, but it’s not OK to raise your fist, if you disagree.” A few right-wing militia groups such as the Three-Percenters came to the rally dressed in combat fatigues and watched over the crowd.
“This rally is supposed to set the bar for future rallies.”
Only a handful of protestors meandered at the outskirts of the rally. Sante Mastriana, 26, from Philadelphia, Pa., held a sign that read, “Resign,” with a picture of the Trump family. He sported an American flag tied into a cape as he wandered alone through the crowd. He said that a scheduled counter-protest had been canceled, so he opted to come by himself. “I’m not going to be yelling at people. I’m not going to be trying to disrupt what they have going on as much as I might disagree. In fact, there are some things about this rally that I kind of appreciate that they’ve explicitly tried to say they are not going to do. For example, they can’t fly confederate flags or have swastikas,” said Mastriana. “But, if someone wants to come up to me, because they disagree, and we can have a dialogue—fantastic. If it just shows people that this is not acceptable in everyone’s mind, that’s sufficient for me.”
“If someone wants to come up to me, because they disagree, and we can have a dialogue—fantastic.“
Writing and photography by Amanda Mosher