Originally published July 13, 2023 1:57 pm PDT
Former President Donald J. Trump will be hosting a screening of the critically acclaimed movie, “Sound of Freedom,” at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster on July 19.
Mexican filmmaker Eduardo Verástegui, Hollywood actor Jim Caviezel, and former federal agent Tim Ballard, on whose life the movie is based, will join him.
The 45th President of the United States made this announcement recently, attracting both club members and supporters to the event.
“Sound of Freedom,” which made $41.7 million in its first week of release and debuted at No. 1 in Texas, Florida, and Arizona theaters, has sparked a national conversation, despite appearing in far fewer theaters than other blockbusters like Disney’s “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” Trump’s press release noted.
The film, distributed by Angel Studios, was produced by Verástegui, a former member of President Trump’s Advisory Commission on Hispanic Prosperity.
Verástegui has been vocal about the importance of addressing “this pernicious evil” eradicating child trafficking,” emphasizing the role of society as a whole.
Based on a true story, “Sound of Freedom” follows Tim Ballard’s mission to save children from child sex traffickers in Colombia.
While liberal media outlets such as the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and The Hollywood Reporter have refused to review the film, others like Rolling Stone, Washington Post, CNN, and The Guardian have drawn criticism for mocking the movie and the millions of viewers who have purchased tickets, the press release explains.
In the early days of his presidency, Trump expressed his readiness to “bring the full force and weight of our government” to halt human trafficking.
In 2017, his administration saw a 14% increase in human trafficking convictions compared to the previous year.
The same year, Trump’s Director of National Intelligence elevated human trafficking to a top priority for America’s intelligence agencies.
President Trump is remembered for his historic steps to combat human trafficking, being the first president to participate in the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, according to the release.
In January 2020, on the 20th Anniversary of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, he signed an Executive Order on Combating Human Trafficking and Online Child Exploitation in the United States, resulting in the creation of the first-ever White House position solely dedicated to combatting human trafficking.
Among the measures introduced during Trump’s presidency, his work on the southern border stands out.
He invited Tim Ballard to the White House in 2019 to discuss the importance of his border wall, of which over 450 miles were built, along with implementing stringent immigration policies such as Title 42.
Trump also signed nine pieces of bipartisan legislation to combat human trafficking, approved the largest Department of Justice grant package in history to combat human trafficking, and doubled DOJ funding to combat this issue, per the release.
