NYC Shuts Down Part Of 5th Ave To Paint BLM Mural In Front Of Trump Tower
New York’s new ‘Black Lives Matter’ mural covers a section of 5th Avenue right outside of Trump Tower
After weeks of protests against racism and police brutality followed the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, our country continues to reckon with the systemic racism that still exists in our institutions — like police forces nationwide. Just after city lawmakers agreed on a budget that would deeply cut funding for the NYPD and instead divert more money to needed social services, New Yorkers shut down a block of 5th Avenue to paint it over with a giant “Black Lives Matter” mural.
The section of the street where the mural was painted was right outside of Trump Tower. New York Mayor Bill De Blasio and the Rev. Al Sharpton joined in to help paint it. Now, in large yellow block letters, “Black Lives Matter” spans a bustling city block.
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Trump reacted to the “Black Lives Matter” mural just about how you’d expect him to: by calling it a “symbol of hate” and saying it’s “denigrating” 5th Avenue, which is known for luxury apartments and shopping.
Trump also did a phone interview on Fox News where he treated the mural as if it were Mayor de Blasio himself personally snubbing Trump after the two regularly fought over supplies and federal aid when New York was the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. All told, nearly 25,000 New York City residents died.
“I got that man everything, I spoke to him many times,” Trump said. “He couldn’t have been nicer — and then he throws a big ‘Black Lives Matter’ sign right down in the middle of Fifth Avenue.”
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The only reason for Trump to be offended by a message that simply reads “Black Lives Matter” is if he’s an unapologetic racist, but we already know he is. Other than that, we have just one message for Trump: This isn’t about you.
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De Blasio had another message, which he wrote on Twitter.
“Here’s what you don’t understand: Black people BUILT 5th Ave and so much of this nation. Your ‘luxury’ came from THEIR labor, for which they have never been justly compensated. We are honoring them,” he said. “The fact that you see it as denigrating your street is the definition of racism.”
We couldn’t agree with that more.
