Off-duty Lorain officer leads pledge at Trump rally

by Jon Wysochanski 

CLEVELAND — Lorain police Officer Steyven Curry met Donald Trump at the Republican candidate’s I-X Center rally Saturday after Curry led the thousands gathered there in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Curry, 56, a 24-year veteran of the Lorain police force, made it clear he was on his own time at the rally and not representing Lorain police.

The veteran cop said the chance to lead Trump supporters in the Pledge of Allegiance was a great opportunity because more people should focus on the words of the pledge during such a politically divided era.

PHOTO PROVIDED
Lorain police Officer Steyven Curry with Donald Trump on March 12 at a rally at the Cleveland I-X Center.

Curry, who draws and paints when he’s not working in his role as a police officer, said he is painting a 3-by-2-foot portrait of Trump.

The painting, which is not finished but which will be given to a Republican delegate when complete, came to the attention of the campaign recently. Curry was asked to lead the Pledge of Allegiance at the rally, where he also met Trump.

“I shook his hand after his campaign people introduced me, and we had time for a quick photo,” Curry said.

Curry, who said he’s voted for both Republican and Democratic presidential candidates in the past, said he supports Trump because he’s a man outside of the political arena.

“He’s not a politician,” Curry said. “Politicians have playbooks they play by on both sides, but Trump is the wild card because he’s not from the political structure. It’s been difficult for the parties to deal with him.”

Curry said he also likes that Trump is a businessman with a background in construction, a field that requires a strong work ethic and which is filled with people from numerous and diverse backgrounds.

Curry said he’s encountered people who are curious as to how a black man such as himself can support a candidate who has espoused prejudiced and bigoted viewpoints.

But Curry said he’s not buying into that depiction of Trump or some of the controversial things he’s said, saying how one views the Republican wildcard candidate is a matter of perception.

“You can’t be a successful businessman and a racist because being successful requires working with all people,” Curry said. “And if you look at his show ‘The Apprentice’ he has blacks on his show, whites on his show and country singers on his show.”

Those who believe Trump is a fearmonger peddling prejudicial viewpoints were sparsely mixed in with the throngs of Trump supporters inside the I-X Center on Saturday.

Several demonstrators who made it inside shouted “Trump is racist” and “Trump hates,” some of whom were standing near groups of black men as well as Sikh and Muslim men holding signs expressing their support for Trump.

For Curry, he said he’ll stick to examining all the evidence for himself, when it comes to choosing who he wants to lead the country.

“I look at who I feel is the best person to do the job,” he said. “I base my decisions on a final analysis. Trump is intriguing because he’s outside the establishment.”

About Jon Wysochanski

Jon Wysochanski is a reporter for the Chronicle-Telegram covering Avon, Avon Lake, Sheffield Village and Sheffield Lake. He can be reached at 329-7123 orJWysochanski@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter.

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