When an Afghan man names his son Donald Trump
Want to know just how popular American President Donald Trump is? An Afghan man has named his son after the billionaire, hoping that he'd replicate the staggering success of arguably the most controversial world leader today. Despite being ostracized, called an infidel, forced to move cities, and facing an imminent threat to life, Sayed Assadullah Pooya refuses to rename his 18-month-old son. Here's more.
Why Donald Trump?
A fan of the American President, Sayed got motivated to name his youngest son Donald Trump after doing a lot of research and reading several Persian versions of the tycoon's books, including "How to get rich". He says looking at Trump's photos makes his 18-month-old son "happy". Interestingly, baby Donald was born only a few months before the 2016 US presidential election, reported AFP.
Baby Trump, parents trolled on FB, given death threats
However, now Sayed is at the heart of a social media firestorm in Afghanistan after someone posted a photo of baby Donald's ID papers on Facebook. He and his wife were flooded with "vulgar and insulting" comments. Some even threatened to kill him over the name. Others have slammed him for risking the boy's life. Sayed eventually had to close his Facebook account.
Estranged from family, boycotted by society
It isn't just social media. Even Sayed's parents didn't approve of their grandson's name, forcing him to leave his family home in Daikundi for Kabul. His relatives don't talk to him anymore. Some people have accused him of exploiting Trump's name to get asylum in the US. He, however, refutes all such claims. Now, even his neighbors in Kabul have asked him to leave.
'To hell with other people'
Despite the controversy and the backlash, Sayed - a 28-year-old teacher - is stubbornly determined to stick to Donald Trump. By giving his son an un-Islamic name, he hasn't broken any law as Afghans are legally allowed to name their children anything. Aware that baby Donald might be bullied by his classmates, he nevertheless says, "I won't reconsider. To hell with the other people."
