Washington, D.C
Mysterious bronze neo-Nazi tiki torch for Trump statue appears in Washington DC
A mysterious bronze-colored, tiki torch statue has popped up in Washington DC in a “tribute” to Donald Trump’s infamous comments calling white nationalists who marched through Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017 “very fine people.”
The satirical effigy – which sits only a few blocks from the White House on Freedom Plaza – was erected on Monday and depicts a large hand clutching a tiki torch, a symbol that has become negatively associated with white supremacy in the US.
The temporary monument is named “The Donald J. Trump Enduring Flame” and features a plaque at its base, reading: “This monument pays tribute to President Donald Trump and the ‘very fine people’ he boldly stood to defend when they marched in Charlottesville, Virginia.
“While many have called them white supremacists and neo-nazis, President Trump’s voice rang out above the rest to remind all that they were “treated absolutely unfairly.”
“This monument stands as an everlasting reminder of that bold proclamation.”
In August 2017, thousands of neo-Nazis and white supremacists staged a “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville. The event descended into violence and counter-protester Heather Heyer, 32, was struck and killed when a car was driven into a crowd of people.
Two police officers also died when their helicopter crashed during the chaos.
Following the violence, Trump sparked outrage for saying there were “very fine people” on both sides.
“Excuse me, they didn’t put themselves down as neo-Nazis, and you had some very bad people in that group. But you also had people that were very fine people on both sides,” the then-president said at a news conference at Trump Tower.
The tiki torch statue is the second satirical bronze monument to appear in the Capitol within a week.
The first installation appeared on October 24 in the form of a bronze turd – resembling the “poop” emoji – propped up on a desk featuring Nancy Pelosi’sname placard, in an ironic tribute to the January 6 Capitol rioters.
The plaque beneath the bronze excrement reads: “This memorial honors the brave men and women who broke into the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, to loot, urinate, and defecate throughout those hallowed halls in order to overturn an election.
“President Trump celebrates these heroes of January 6th as ‘unbelievable patriots’ and ‘warriors.’
“This monument stands as a testament to their daring sacrifice and lasting legacy.”
Vandals have already removed Pelosi’s name from the statue, reported The Washington Post.
The individual or individuals behind the political statues remain something of a mystery.
However, permits for the sculptures were granted by the National Park Service to an entity named “Civic Crafted LLC. Julia Jimenez-Pyzik.”
The permits, seen by The Independent, allow the tiki torch to remain in place until Thursday and the excrement structure until Wednesday.
Washington local and park regular Eric Brewer, 56, told the Post of the tiki torch structure: “I think it’s a perfect piece of satirical sculpture in its placement, in its timing, in its execution.”
To mark Gun Violence Awareness Month, residents in Southeast D.C. came together to search for a lasting solution.
The Trigger Project held a peace walk Saturday afternoon reflecting on lives impacted by gun violence
The Trigger Project decided to host the walk to give victims’ loved ones a chance to be among others who have experienced the pain of losing a loved one.
The agency said it prides itself on getting the word out about how to prevent gun violence through lived experiences, community leadership and partnerships. The group aims to uplift young people through healing, opportunity and connection while addressing the root causes of gun violence. Another critical part of the event was to ensure that young people have a safe space where they can hang out.
“We’re losing too many of our babies to the streets, you know what I’m saying?” said Darlene Williams, who said she has been a victim of gun violence and also lost her granddaughter to gun violence. “Like I say, the guns don’t kill, people kill. [..] Be around other people, you know what I’m saying, that’s going through the same thing that we’re going through.”
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Back to The Atlantic
(NEWS FROM THE STATES) – Visitors from across the United States traveled to the National Mall Thursday for the opening day of the Great American State Fair, a days-long event that is part of President Donald Trump’s Freedom 250 celebration of the nation’s semiquincentennial.
States and territories showed off cultural and agricultural exports at exhibits stretching nearly a mile. Attendees snapped photos on the small Grand Ole Opry stage in the Tennessee booth, kids tried putt-putt at Indiana’s miniature golf course and cowboys rode horses at Montana’s rodeo.
A 110-foot Ferris wheel slowly turned at the center of the freshly manicured lawn, framing the Washington Monument and the U.S. Capitol in the distance on either side. Nearby stood a model of Trump’s controversial “triumphal arch.”
People collected swag from each state — drawstring bags from Ohio, stickers from South Dakota, snacks from Tennessee — and could receive a stamp on state fair passports.
The fair is part of the larger Freedom 250 programming and kicked off Wednesday night with a rally on the mall featuring a speech from the president that closely resembled his remarks along the 2024 presidential campaign trail. The festivities will continue over Independence Day, when Trump will deliver a second speech followed by what is promised to be an impressive fireworks display.
The president will visit North and South Dakota as part of his Freedom 250 tour for the opening of the Teddy Roosevelt presidential library and Independence Day eve fireworks above Mount Rushmore.
Freedom 250 then extends into August with a high school athletic competition in Washington, D.C., dubbed the “Patriot Games” and a Freedom 250 INDYCAR race around the National Mall.
The administration’s celebration is separate from the America250 commission, created by Congress a decade ago, and which has its own nationwide programming this year.
From Lake Erie to the Ohio River
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and first lady Fran DeWine greeted guests in Ohio’s pavilion. The couple posed for photos in front of a map of the Buckeye State.
“We wanted to see on the wall all the different things, from Lake Erie to the Ohio River, all the different fun things you can do in Ohio,” the Republican governor said, adding the state has local celebrations and initiatives planned for the 250th anniversary, including “Movies in Ohio” for community showings of films that feature the state.
Ohio’s first lady showcased a children’s literacy exhibit on the opposite wall and touted the roughly 427,000 participants in the state’s partnership with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, a program that mails free children’s books monthly to households with kids under age 5.
“We’ve mailed out 27 million books. We know that a child’s brain is 80% developed by age 3, so we want to get them those books early,” she said.
Reflecting on America’s milestone birthday, the governor said, “We’re always a work in progress, Ohio’s a work in progress, this country is a work in progress.”
“I think you know the thing we need to keep in mind, all of us, is there’s some essential core principles that we all believe in. … We may disagree about different policies, but the core principles are the same,” he said.
Cartwheels on the lawn
People from various states walked from exhibit to exhibit, while stopped in the nation’s capital during road trip vacations.
Tanya Geders, 43, of St. Louis, Missouri, did a cartwheel in the mall lawn, trying to persuade her son to join in. The family stopped at the state fair on their way to Virginia Beach.
“We’re like, well, if we go to the ocean, we can go to D.C. and what a better time to be here than the 250th anniversary,” Geders said.
Robyn Toman, 71, of Severn, Maryland, escorted her 12-year-old grandson Miles to meet DeWine and grab a photo with the governor.
Toman said she remembers the country’s bicentennial.
“I was a kid about his age, and I came in 1976. I said, ‘We’re gonna go, let’s go down to D.C. for a couple days and see this,’” she said.
“We’ve enjoyed it. We went over to the archives yesterday, and saw the Constitution, and the Declaration of Independence, and the Bill of Rights. And, oh, that was so nice, that was fantastic.”
Not all states are there. A spokesperson for Washington state’s lieutenant governor’s office told States Newsroom the administration declined to join because of “the costs to the state associated with participating.”According to news reports, Connecticut, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont did not contribute exhibits, though many are still represented by flags outside the individual booths.The state officials did not immediately respond to States Newsroom for confirmation.
All states that reportedly did not participate, with the exception of Vermont, are Democratic-led.
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