A protester with 9/11 Justice at a press conference organized by the organization to oppose the Saudi-funded LIV Golf Invitational Series near Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, NJ, on 29 July 2022. (Doug Mills/The New York Times) )
BEDMINSTER, NJ – A somber, tearful group of protesters stood between two American flags behind a public library, in stark contrast to the festivities of a golf tournament 3 miles down the road. They made their statements and promoted their cause, but refused to take the fight to the gates of Trump National Golf Club Bedminster.
“We’re glad people are bringing attention back to this issue,” said Jay Winuk, one of the organizers of the protest. “There is no reason to go to the scene where another atrocity is taking place.”
The group, a group of relatives of victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, spoke vehemently against the Saudi-backed LIV golf tournament, which is being held this weekend at the club owned by former president Donald Trump.
Subscribe to The Morning newsletter from The New York Times
The group, 9/11 Justice, aims to bring to justice Saudi Arabian government officials it claims supported the terrorists. They are furious that Trump once accepted that the Saudi government was responsible but has changed his view, they said, to take advantage of Saudi efforts to clean up the nation’s global image through sports.
“How much money does it take to turn your back on your country, on the American people?” said Juliette Scauso, who was 4 years old when her father, firefighter Dennis Scauso, was killed in the attacks.
For days, LIV golfers and Trump have defended their decisions to align themselves with the breakaway tour and accept millions of dollars from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, which is overseen by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Critics of the tour say it is another example of Saudi “sportswashing” atrocities attributed to them: supporting the 9/11 terrorists, killing journalist Jamal Khashoggi and oppressing women and community members LGBTQ.
Trump, who as a 2016 presidential candidate blamed the Saudis for the 9/11 attacks, said Thursday that “no one has gotten to the bottom of 9/11, unfortunately.”
The story continues
On Friday, protesters had a chance to respond to both Trump and the golfers. Many accused the golfers of cowardice for proclaiming their sympathy with their cause while still accepting money from LIV Golf.
“You’re either taking a position that you agree with the actions of Saudi Arabia or, just as bad, that you’re so incredibly greedy and insensitive that you really don’t care about these atrocities,” Scauso said.
Organizers came to the protest armed with copies of declassified FBI documents, which they say establish a clear connection between 12 Saudi government officials and the terrorists in the months leading up to the attacks.
“It’s simple,” said Tim Frolich, who was in the south tower on 9/11. “The Saudis did it. They plotted it, they funded it, and now they’re trying to distract from all this stuff with a golf tournament 50 miles away from ground zero. It’s deplorable.”
The group urged golf fans to boycott LIV Golf and asked golfers and anyone doing business with the Saudis, including broadcasters, to reconsider. On Friday morning, at a nearby Marriott that serves as tour headquarters for its Bedminster stop, group members approached David Feherty, a former CBS and NBC golf analyst who has defected to join on tour despite not having an American television contract. yet.
Brett Eagleson, the president of 9/11 Justice, asked Feherty if he would listen and perhaps talk to the golfers about the decisions they are making.
“He was actually very receptive,” Eagleson said. “He was very open to working with us and having a partnership with us, rather than being combative. I’m hopeful.”
But Eagleson was far less conciliatory to Trump, who he said was more to blame than the golfers because, as the former commander-in-chief, he should know better. Eagleson was part of a group that met with Trump at the White House on Sept. 11, 2019. They say Trump urged them to continue their work, which they did vigorously on Friday.
Eagleson said Trump’s claim that “no one has gotten to the bottom of 9/11” infuriated victims’ relatives beyond their already simmering anger.
“Our loved ones are the heroes,” he said, “and the golfers and the former president are cowards.”
As the protesters spoke, several passing cars honked their horns in support, but a few drivers shouted in support of Trump and one yelled at family members to go home.
Winuk, whose brother Glenn Winuk, a volunteer firefighter, died in the attacks, called the Saudi funds “blood money” and warned that anyone who took them would carry the “stink” forever.
“LIV Golf?” he said “For me and many others, it’s more like the gulf of death.”
Several members of the group, including former Trump supporters, have taken to the podium to criticize the Saudis, the golfers and the former president. When asked what else the group had planned, Eagleson broke down as he explained the exhaustion he and other members of the organization felt.
“I’m tired of fighting,” she said through tears.
© 2022 The New York Times Company