Tory Sletten has been in Washington, D.C., four times after what he calls the “stolen election” in 2020. Making the trek to the nation’s capital from Tampa, Florida, to see President Donald Trump’s inauguration was a priority for the supporter.

Sletten was one of dozens who took to the streets on Inauguration Day with the right-wing extremist group, the Proud Boys.

Four years after the Jan. 6 insurrection on the Capitol, the group the Proud Boys took back to the streets in their yellow and black trademark colors, despite below freezing temperatures in Washington.

While Trump went about swearing-in procedures inside the Capital One Arena, the Proud Boys came out en masse to broadcast Trump’s remarks on their megaphones as they continued marching around the city. 

Sletten, like many Proud Boys, said he participated eagerly in the Jan. 6 insurrection. 

But unlike others who consider the event a violent attack on the democratic process, Sletten sees arrests that resulted as a “setup by the FBI and the CIA to cover up a stolen election.” 

As of Monday night, Trump issued widespread pardons for over 1,500 of his supporters charged with crimes in relation to Jan. 6. That included the former leader of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, who was serving a 22-year sentence. 

Jan. 20, 2025, ushered in a second Trump presidency, with supporters, such as the Proud Boys, calling upon specific issues to explain their unwavering support of the president. 

Sletten said a top issue is the nation’s southern border with Mexico. 

“(The migrants) know Papa Trump is coming to town and we need it…it’s so obvious what they have done to the American people,” Sletten said. 

Sletten believes that this is what “woke a lot of people up” to the issues he sees with the Democratic party. 

“They’re like, scratching their heads down in the inner city of Chicago or New York, and saying, ‘Where are our resources going? It’s going for the immigrants,” Sletten said.

Trump has often called out Chicago for their standing as a “sanctuary city” and reports that have been released in recent days show that Trump plans to begin mass deportations in Chicago. 

On Monday, Trump also declared a national emergency at the Southern border. 

While Proud Boys and other right-wing groups congregated in D.C. for what they saw as a celebratory day, protestors took to the streets of Chicago, vowing to resist Donald Trump and his promise to hunt down and deport undocumented immigrants in Cook County and beyond. 

Sletten wasn’t the only supporter at the Proud Boys rally who complained that immigrants are depleting resources throughout the country.

Jason Serena, 21, and his brother, Dylan Serena, 26, traveled from the Pittsburgh area to attend the various festivities on Inauguration Day.

The brothers’ father owns a construction company. They said his company refuses to hire “illegal immigrants,” claiming that “other companies” in their area do the same. 

The Serena brothers also expressed anger that migrants receive what they believe to be hotel rooms, apartments, food stamps, cell phones and “millions of dollars from the federal government.” 

Undocumented people who enter the U.S. are not eligible for federal assistance. Those who qualify for refugee status or are officially granted asylum receive cash assistance solely related to their initial resettlement, according to the AP.  

Many of the men in this group communicated that they worried about the many Americans experiencing homelessness. They said they are hopeful that President Trump will alleviate this issue with his second term in office. 

With chants, including “stand back and stand by” and their well-known hand signal, which looks something like an “OK” sign, the extremist group firmly asserted their unwavering support for the new president.

Even so, some Trump supporters conceded that the situation may not be as black and white as Trump and other politicians make it out to be.

Jack Ancona, who spent his Inauguration Day in front of Capital One Arena and was not part of the Proud Boys group, said calls for “mass deportations” were unrealistic. 

“I think we have more important fights to take on and not worry about all of that,” Ancona said. “If (immigrants) are willing to work hard, be a good American and love the flag, I’m good with those people.” 

The new Trump administration has already begun fulfilling their promises regarding the Southern border. Just after being sworn in, the CBP One app  which helps migrants enter the United States with eligibility to work was shut down. 

Even Sletten, the Jan. 6 attendee, said he understands why people cross the southern border.

“It’s not their fault…,” he said. “We probably would make the journey ourselves.”

While some showed a concrete view on immigration, other Trump supporters attending Inauguration Day festivities, including Marty Wilson from Louisville, Kentucky, expressed appreciation for the immigrants in their circles.

Wilson works in the Louisville school system, where he said he’s surrounded by Hispanic coworkers.

“A lot of the people that do come to this country are very hard-working people,” said Wilson, who wore a red Make America Great Again hat. “There’s a lot of hard working people coming into this country, and they deserve a chance too.”

Related Stories:

• Latines who backed Trump share their hopes for the next four years at the Inauguration
• ‘People are going to stand up’: Hundreds protest against Trump downtown Chicago

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