About 15 people organized by Indivisible Blair County demonstrate in front of U.S. Rep. John Joyce’s Blair County office on Sixth Avenue in Eldorado Wednesday afternoon, carrying signs criticizing Joyce for his support of the Trump administration and his alleged refusal to engage with ideological opponents. Mirror photo by William Kibler

About 15 people organized by Indivisible Blair County demonstrated in front of U.S. Rep. John Joyce’s Blair County office on Sixth Avenue in Eldorado Wednesday afternoon, carrying signs criticizing Joyce for his support of the Trump administration and his alleged refusal to engage with ideological opponents.

“Joyce is invisible to us,” said demonstrator Denice Rodaniche of Altoona. “He does not respond to anything we say to get his attention.”

It seems like “he’s in there (in office) for a reason that doesn’t include addressing his constituents’ concerns,” Rodaniche said. “It makes it seem like he’s hiding from us.”

The Mirror attempted to get a response from Joyce, and exchanged texts with a spokesperson, then followed that spokesperson’s instructions to obtain a comment, but none was forthcoming Wednesday evening.

Indivisible would like Joyce to do an in-person town hall, but Joyce refused an invitation to such an event organized by Indivisible early this year, according to group President Carol Taylor.

Joyce occasionally holds telephone town halls, but his staff “cherrypicks” the questions, Taylor said.

The group wants an open, in-person forum, she said.

Retired Hollidaysburg Area School District history teacher Kirk Dodson wants to ask Joyce where he stands on the potential release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

Dodson would also like to know why the local representative “is so willing to roll over for (President Donald) Trump,” he said.

Someone smart enough to get through medical school — Joyce is a dermatologist — should know better, according to Dodson.

During the demonstration, some passing motorists honked their horns in friendly fashion and waved.

A smaller number expressed disapproval, one with an obscene gesture out of his driver’s side window, others by causing their vehicles to backfire or by gunning their engines.

One motorist stopped in the roadway for about 30 seconds and insulted the demonstrators through his open passenger-side window.

“There’s always someone,” said demonstrator Bill Kelley of Tyrone of that incident.

He feels bad for people who scream obscenities on such occasions, he said.

“That’s all they got,” he said.

It would be better if instead they’d be willing to “be in dialogue,” he said.

“It’s important to speak out to show people we’re not afraid,” Dodson said, though not necessarily referring to the man who swore at the demonstrators.

Kelley would prefer that the national situation were such that it wouldn’t be necessary to demonstrate, he said.

But it’s important for people to make their feelings known about issues like the Republicans’ plan to cut health insurance subsidies, Kelley said.

He’s seen health insurance premium increases projected based on the proposed subsidy cuts that the Republicans prefer that are “terrifying,” he said.

In one family’s case, the premium increase was projected to be $16,000 a year, he said.

The Trump administration is infringing on Constitutional rights, including by Trump’s push to eliminate birthright citizenship, even as oligarchs who support the administration are taking control of the media, Dodson said.

The country doesn’t belong to Trump — or to Joyce — but rather to the people as a whole, he said.

“We’re in a very bad time,” Dodson stated.

Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.