Amid an intense immigration crackdown, a man has taken extreme lengths to publicly call for the deportation of his Latino neighbor in Pitt County, North Carolina. The man, identified as Douglas Dietrich, erected a signboard in his yard directing Donald Trump’s attention to his neighborhood. A clip shared on Reddit shows the banner carrying the words, “BUILD THE WALL. DEPORT THEM ALL. TRUMP START WITH MY NEIGHBORHOOD FIRST.”
Dietrich’s reason for the notice comes from his displeasure with a business close to him. “It appears this shop has came next door to us against our wishes with illegal immigrants,” Dietrich said in the clip.
The business referred to is Monkey’s Garage, owned by Enrique Garfias, who clarified that he is a legal citizen of the United States. Garfias described the poster as offensive, seeing as it was targeted at him.
“There is so much hate already. I don’t hate him. He can do whatever he wants,” Garfias explained. “He thinks he’s right. People out there are gonna see that what he’s doing is not right.”
Despite the outrage the placard has caused, Dietrich has made it known he’s not taking it down. “Maybe even add another sign to it,” he declared. However, the town’s officials have confirmed that Dietrich’s actions violate the Grifton Town Zoning Ordinance, which requires permits before putting up signboards.
In an interview with WITN, the aggrieved citizen expressed his frustrations with Monkey’s Garage, alleging that he previously wanted to purchase the building for his venture. At that time, he was informed by members of the Grifton town government that it was not allowed because it was in a neighborhood.
He finds it unfair that while his plans were denied under the previous administration, a Hispanic family is now allowed to run their establishment in that very location. After the video went viral, several netizens blasted Dietrich’s behavior. One commenter questioned, “‘Moved in next door against our wishes,’ does he need your wishes to move into or buy a piece of property??”
Another user added, “The guy who owns the garage seems like 100x more valuable a member of society than this dipsh*t with the sign does.”
This other critic alluded to religion, suggesting that if the “teachings of the religion he believes in are indeed correct: he will be going to hell.”
A fourth user chimed in, “Guy is just trying to make an honest living, and typical magat has to try to tear him down.”
Regarding the necessary permits for the poster, Dietrich stated that he has already submitted an application and is currently awaiting approval.
