J.J. Holmes, age 12, had two very different experiences this weekend.
Twelve-year-old J.J. Holmes begged his mother to drive him to a Donald Trump rally in Tampa, Florida, on Saturday. J.J., who has cerebral palsy, wanted to go and protest the Republican nominee’s treatment of people with disabilities.
His mother, Alison, agreed to make the trip. But once they got there and began chanting Hillary Clinton’s name, Trump ordered them out of the rally.
Trump supporters responded by “chanting ‘U-S-A’ and pushing his wheelchair,” Alison told The Washington Post.
“We were put out by security,” she said. “Mr. Trump kept saying, ‘Get them out.’”
The day after J.J. and his mom were kicked out of the Trump rally, they headed to Kissimmee, Florida, about an hour east of Tampa, to watch President Barack Obama deliver one of his final campaign speeches on behalf of Clinton. The president and the former secretary of state are two of J.J.’s heroes, Kimberly DeFalco, a woman who witnessed the events at the Trump rally and spoke about it with Alison, posted on Facebook.
DeFalco asked for help in arranging a meeting between the 12-year-old boy and the president. “This would be life-changing for JJ and also send powerful encouragement for all who live with disabilities and rise up despite them!” she wrote.
In his speech, Obama urged Floridians to go out and vote. “It is about the character of this country,” he said. “Who are we? What do we stand for?”
After he finished speaking, Obama took a moment to meet J.J. and shake hands with the young Trump protester.
As Alison described their experience at Saturday’s Trump rally to The Washington Post, J.J., speaking with the help of a computer vocalization device, interjected.
“I hate Donald Trump,” he said. “I hate Donald Trump.”
Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims — 1.6 billion members of an entire religion — from entering the U.S.
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