OPINION:
It took only hours for the Marxist-China-friendly People’s Forum to organize, staff and equip protesters to descend on Times Square on Feb. 28 to proclaim solidarity with Iran’s brutal regime.
On President Trump’s first day of bombing Iran, women marched for the Islamic mullahs who “disappear” Iranian women over their fashion choices. Protesting men marched for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, now dead, just weeks after he ordered the slaughter of thousands of Iranians who wanted freedom. Did I tell you that Ayatollah Khamenei executed gays for being gay?
Congressional Republicans and conservatives have done a good job of exposing the People’s Forum as a puppet of the People’s Republic of China. When left-wing fanatics throw in the catchy “People’s,” you know it means what they have in store: authoritarianism, misery and mass death.
The forum’s sugar daddy is Neville Roy Singham, an American tech mogul billionaire living in China who gave the group $20 million. He is friendly with the Chinese Communist Party, the same people who poison, hack, sabotage and infiltrate America. The FBI says China places cyberbombs inside our water/electric supply lines.
“The U.S. and Israel are carrying out an unprovoked, illegal bombing campaign on Iran,” The People’s Forum posted on X. “This war serves no one but a tiny elite and oil executives and is a continuation of more than two years of genocide in Palestine and US-Israeli aggressions throughout the region Join us in the streets to say NO to another U.S. war for empire!”
The post contained the official announcement: “EMERGENCY PROTEST. STOP THE WAR ON IRAN … TIMES SQUARE.”
Did anyone attend the forum’s protest over Ayatollah Khamenei’s destruction of thousands of lives in just a few days? Probably not. There wasn’t one.
Congress is on to the fake People’s Forum.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, Missouri Republican, stated in September that there is “mounting evidence that shows that this organization has acted as a foreign agent of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and has received millions of dollars in funding from a known CCP ally, Neville Roy Singham, while enjoying the benefits of U.S. tax-exempt status.”
Mr. Smith listed The People’s Forum’s great accomplishments:
“Justified Hamas’ October 7th terrorist attack”; “incited protests and riots across the U.S.,” such as college takeovers and disrupting immigration enforcement; “hosted events … glorifying the Chinese revolution and partnering with pro-PRC groups”; “admitted to receiving over $20 million in funding from Neville Roy Singham” who has “long-documented CCP ties, which was funneled through shell companies and donor-advised funds.”
Mr. Smith dispatched a blistering letter to the forum’s executive director, Manolo De Los Santos, demanding records.
“Since Hamas’ terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023, The People’s Forum has been responsible for an endless amount of chaos and disruption around the country,” Mr. Smith told him. On Oct. 8, 2023, just one day after the terrorist attacks, The People’s Forum organized a protest in Times Square “to stand with the people of Palestine, who have the right to resist apartheid, occupation & oppression.”
Mr. Smith suggested that The People’s Forum was violating federal law by failing to file with the Justice Department as the agent of a foreign country, i.e., China.
Five months after Mr. Smith’s rebuke, Mr. Singham has a new far-left cause: Protect the Iranian mullahs, whose top oil customer is none other than China.
The Singham household is the full package. He promotes communists. His wife, Jodie Evans, co-founded Code Pink, the openly anti-American feminist mob.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley of Iowa is also People’s Forum-savvy.
In an April letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel, he urged the two to review whether the forum needs to register as a foreign agent.
The senator quoted a People’s Forum social media post that said, “For months we’ve been the target of a campaign that alleges our funding comes from ‘dark money.’ A few years ago we met Roy Singham, a Marxist comrade who sold his company & donated most of his wealth to non-profits that focus on political education, culture & internationalism.”
His letter also said, “The Executive Director at The People’s Forum, Manolo De Los Santos, during an appearance on the YouTube channel of CGTN, a Chinese state-owned media group, said ‘China’s political and economic system puts “people first.”’”
The forum’s website features courses on “Lenin and the Path to Revolution” and “China75 — When the People Stand Up.”
The Washington Times reported in February that the State Department sent a report to Congress, “Countering Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference.”
“Organizations like Code Pink and the People’s Forum denigrate the United States, whitewash the violence of Marxist regimes, and run cover for China while enjoying an influx of cash from a donor network with connections to the Chinese Communist Party,” the State Department said.
Mr. Santos’ webpage bio brags that he co-edited the “selected speeches” of Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro.
Wouldn’t it be great if Mr. Singham and The People’s Forum could bring police state communism to America?
• Rowan Scarborough is a columnist with The Washington Times.
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