The U.S. Southern Command canceled two showings of the anti-child sex trafficking film “Sound of Freedom.”
Critics of the film have questioned whether the military base remained apolitical in offering to show the film.
The film was originally planned to be shown on August 28th and October 19 in “support of SOUTHCOM’s mission to promote respect for human rights and combating trafficking in persons in Central and South America and the Caribbean,” according to a flyer.
“The showing of this film does not imply or constitute endorsement by the US Army nor SOUTHCOM,” the flyer read.
SOUTHCOM then canceled the event, citing concerns of “copyright infringement” in an email to the outlet Military Times since the film is “currently available to view at local theaters, and personnel and their families who would like to see the film are encouraged to do so.”
The email added, “The movie’s central theme and its connection to SOUTHCOM’s AOR and our Human Rights Office (HRO) Combatting Trafficking in Persons (CTIP) program are inescapable and will serve to raise awareness of the prevalence of trafficking in human persons and sexual abuse and exploitation within our area of responsibility.”
Reporting from The Post Millennial:
SOUTHCOM spokesman Jose Ruiz told the outlet, “The subject of the movie is something that’s of great concern to the command, in that it follows as part of its mission of countering transnational criminal organizations.” “Because of the way these transnational criminal organizations exploit migrants — the hopes of migrants — in ways that end up being serious violations to their human rights, and unfortunately in some cases lead to the deaths of the migrants.”
