An activist responsible for helping fly the Trump baby blimp defended the decision Monday, saying the move was more than a joke.
“Our balloon is part of a proud history of political satire in the UK that sends a clear, orange, message to Trump and his politics of hate that they are not welcome here,” Anna Vickerstaff, an activist who supports using nonviolent resistance to fight for social justice, said in an article published in the Independent.
“We know Trump isn’t a joke — he is responsible for rampant xenophobia, sexism and transphobia and the creeping rise of far right politics. His climate denial and persistent facilitation of the fossil fuel industry is a death sentence for communities in the global south. But if flying a balloon caricature is what gets under his skin — then that’s exactly what we’re going to do,” Vickerstaff added.
The Trump baby blimp debuted in 2018 when protesters crowdfunded the project to fly in London during his visit.
Sky News used the image of the blimp Saturday in a video to advertise its coming coverage of Trump’s state visit to the U.K.
Guess who’s back?
Watch full coverage of President Trump’s state visit to the UK from Monday on @SkyNews. #TrumpVisit
You can find us on Sky channel 501 or live here https://t.co/mFrfbZynow pic.twitter.com/o68z0wfqtn
— Sky News (@SkyNews) June 1, 2019
Trump said in 2018 that the baby blimp made him “feel unwelcome.”
“I used to love London as a city. I haven’t been there in a long time. But when they make you feel unwelcome, why would I stay there?” Trump said. “I guess when they put out blimps to make me feel unwelcome, no reason for me to go to London.”
[Also read: London mayor releases video criticizing Trump’s lack of ‘feminist’ values]
