A new billboard in New York City’s Times Square graphically advocates violence against President Donald Trump while it pushes athletic wear while trying to make an unrelated political protest statement at the same time.
The huge sign pictures a female model tying a President Trump lookalike with ropes of red, white and blue, stepping on the president’s head while he grimaces with an open mouth. The image is photorealistic and appears to use an actual image of Trump.
Avi Brown, CEO of Portland-based clothing company Dhvani, told The Associated Press the billboard was intended to be a comment on the Trump administration’s changes to the Title X family planning program blocking federal funding for health providers who refer patients for abortions.
The connection between this political viewpoint and buyers of women’s athletic wear was unclear.
“We are on the right side of history,” Brown said. ‘The billboard is an expression of our First Amendment right. Its art is a symbol. We would never condone violence. This is about taking our country back.”
Other ads in the non-violence-condoning campaign show models taping over Trump’s mouth.
“He unilaterally has created a gag rule that you cannot refer patients with reproductive information about abortion, sex ed, and contraception,’ Brown said.
‘He’s gagging doctors and nurses, and telling them what they can and cannot tell patients.’
The company bought the ad space in Times Square and it includes “middle school teacher and Marine Corps veteran Michal Mesa” over Trump, AdAge reported on Thursday.
President Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., scored the media Friday for not condemning the billboard.
“Since you had time to thoroughly cover a stupid and tasteless meme seen by 8 people with incredible outrage, I figured you should dedicate the same time and outrage to this billboard in Times Square you hypocrites,” he said in a tweet.
Trump Jr. was referring to media coverage of a parody video, played during a conference at Trump’s Miami golf resort, in which Trump’s face and those of his detractors were pasted over faces in a violent scene from the movie Kingsman.
