'Imposter': Trump's devastating impact on tiny Scottish village documented in photographer's book
A newly released book documents the devastating impact Donald Trump’s golf course has had on a tiny village in Scotland, The Guardian reports.
In addition to detailing the environmental impact, activist and photographer Alicia Bruce’s “I Burn But I Am Not Consumed” honors a community that has “refused to bow down, sell up or be pushed around by Donald Trump.”
Trump in 2006 purchased a large part of the Menie Estate in the village of Balmedie to build a sprawling development centered around a golf course.
Bruce’s book features photos and interviews with residents describing the impact of Trump’s development on their picturesque coastal community in the 17 years since he bought the property.
And years before the former president rode a Trump Tower escalator to usher in a new era in American politics, the Balmedie residents issued a warning.
“Americans need to see Trump as we see him here. We recognize him as a dishonest, untrustworthy, unreliable, tax-dodging imposter,” Moira Milne said in 2010.
One resident wrote on their building, “Trump the greatest liar.”
“No golf course. No More Trump lies,” is shown written on a barn.
One of the photos shows a bulldozer used to create a water hazard between the third green and the fourth tee taken in 2013.
Menie Estate resident Kym Swindell, who moved to the community with her husband Mickey Foote, a late music producer who was involved in the production of British punk band The Clash’s first album, said the development has permanently destroyed a local ecosystem.
“The wildness of the dynamic dune system touches the mind, body and spirit. Trouble is, the dune system was a rare gem and once it’s gone, it’s gone. The only positive of this situation is bringing our community together to campaign to save such a rare beauty spot,” Swindell said in 2022.