The U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) needs to reverse its decision to cancel two screenings of the film “Sound of Freedom” at its headquarters in Florida “without delay,” according to Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).
“While reporting suggests that SOUTHCOM unexpectedly canceled the movie due to concerns about ‘copyright infringement,’ I am aware that its producers and the studio have communicated that this is not an impediment for the movie to be shown at SOUTHCOM to service members and their families,” Mr. Rubio wrote.
He added, “As such, since the concern which led to the cancellation has now been addressed, I urge you to rectify this situation and ensure that the screenings of the film be rescheduled without delay.”
Letter
“The topic of the film is directly in line with SOUTHCOM’s mission to combat trafficking and transnational criminal organizations in the command’s area of responsibility,” Mr. Rubio wrote. “Given SOUTHCOM’s robust leadership on combatting trafficking in persons, and the relevance of the ‘Sound of Freedom’ movie to SOUTHCOM’s mission, I was alarmed to learn of the decision to cancel the film’s screenings at SOUTHCOM.”The Florida congressman added that the Pentagon has a long history of working with movie studios to host viewings of movies on U.S. military installations.
Mr. Rubio said there shouldn’t be any concerns about copyright infringement, since the producers and distributors of the movie “have consented to screening the movie at SOUTHCOM.”
“I hope you agree that what matters is whether the movie is worth showing to the troops and potentially meeting the filmmakers, not whether the troops can buy a movie ticket or stream the film on their own,” Mr. Rubio added. “As such, I request immediate confirmation that ‘Sound of Freedom’ will be shown at SOUTHCOM as originally planned.”
In response to The Epoch Times’s inquiry about Mr. Rubio’s letter, SOUTHCOM spokesperson, U.S. Army Col. Emanuel Ortiz, said in an email that the command had “improperly solicited use of the film per procedure outlined” in an Army regulation.
Support
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) also voiced his support for the movie. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Wednesday, Mr. Scott shared Mr. Rubio’s letter and said he agreed with his colleague, saying, “There’s absolutely no reason [Sound of Freedom] shouldn’t be shown.”“[SOUTHCOM] should reschedule this immediately,” Mr. Scott added.
Days after the screening, Mr. McCarthy said during a briefing that he believed “every single person should see this movie.”
“There were moments I was emotionally upset,“ Mr. McCarthy said. ”But when you watch and get to the end, and you think today as a policy maker, I would love to sit down and watch this with the president. What is transpiring to these young children? Human trafficking that is going on, let’s not put politics around it. Let’s put these children first.”
In their letter, the GOP senators wrote the movie “has played an important role in creating public awareness of this modern-day form of slavery.”
They added, “Given your committees’ roles in overseeing DHS [Department of Homeland Security], we urge you to investigate and hold hearings into DHS’s efforts to combat human trafficking.”
