by Andrew Salinero
Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for the 2016 presidential Election, recently flew into San Antonio on Friday afternoon to hold a fundraiser with supporters.
The fundraiser lasted only around two hours, but that didn’t stop supporters and protesters alike from camping outside the Oak Hill Country Club out on the city’s northwest side. San Antonio Police sectioned off Fredricksburg Road into two sections, one side for the supporters and the other for the protesters, to prevent violence from erupting such like the ones seen at other Trump rallies across the nation.
Thankfully, nobody was arrested or hurt, but the blockades didn’t stop a war of words from being waged by the two groups, who hurled insults and opinions across the busy street. Many of the signs held by protesters reflected upon the negative comments spoken about Hispanics by the candidate.
If you like The Contemporary and want to help us empower collegiate journalists across the country, please consider donating here.
One demonstrator even held a pinanta and allowed others to come and take a hit at it as another dressed as Hillary Clinton and marched with an American flag. As for the supporters, they voiced their belief Trump is the key to making “America Great Again” and that Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, should be sent to prison.
Despite the common belief that Trump supporters are all white and racist, there is a small minority of Hispanics who support his ideas. As I watched Trump‘s motorcade speed off from the parking lot, a couple of older Hispanic women stood by and cheered as he made his exit. After the vehicles disappeared into the distance, many of the protesters and supporters were cleared out by SAPD, while a couple hung around to continue their campaigns. Trump hopes these rallies in Texas will gain him enough support to win the election, despite a huge drop in the polls and lack of support from fellow Republicans in Congress.
All pictures were taken by the author.
Andrew Salinero is a freelance photographer from San Antonio. He is currently a sophomore who attends Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. As a major in Digital Media Production and a minor in Computer Science, he hopes to one day become a live broadcasting director.
The views expressed in this article are those of the writer, The Contemporary takes no position on matters of policy or opinion.
