Carlos Arredondo and his family found purpose in building a community with other families like theirs that lost children in war, but he fears Donald Trump could lead to more families like his. Arredondo is the father of Marine Lance Cpl. Alexander Arredondo, who was killed in Iraq by a sniper.
Arredondo and his wife Melida Arredondo, Alexander Arredondo’s stepmother, joined with 17 other Gold Star Families – families of fallen service members – and spoke out on Donald Trump’s comments on Khizr Khan and his wife Ghazala as “repugnant” and “offensive to us.” “He is supposed to be up there to unite with me as a grieving father,” Arredondo said in a telephone interview with NBC Latino. “To have someone like that in charge, I don’t want someone to die in war because of his comments.”
The Khan’s son, Capt. Humayun Khan, was killed in Iraq. Khizr Khan spoke at the Democratic National Convention, where he blasted Trump and his policies on Muslims and questioned whether the GOP presidential nominee had read the Constitution. When Trump was asked about the Khans’ appearance at the convention, Trump said he wanted to know why Mrs. Khan didn’t talk, suggesting that the mother had not “been allowed” to speak because she was Muslim.
In the letter to the presidential candidate, the Gold Star families said, “You are not just attacking us, you are cheapening the sacrifice made by those we lost.” “We feel we must speak out and demand you apologize to the Khans, to all Gold Star families and to all Americans for your offensive and frankly, anti-American, comments,” the letter states.
In their struggle to recover from their losses, the Arredondos have turned to other families of members of the military killed while serving and Boston Marathon bombing survivors. Those communities and the support they provide are very important to the Arredondos, Arredondo said. He feels a kinship to Khan, because like him, he is an immigrant. Arredondo is originally from Costa Rica but became a U.S. citizen in 2006. He equates Trump with the bullies he’s endured because of his accent.
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