In the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of police on May 25, mass protests against police brutality and systemic racism have broken out in all 50 states of the U.S., in addition to major cities around the world. Too afraid to confront protesters exercising their First Amendment rights outside his home, Donald Trump had a fence erected around the White House. Social media quickly named the barricade #BabyGate, mocking Trump for his cowardly response to peaceful protests in Washington, D.C., as he hides behind his Twitter feed.
Users compared the fence to a toddler gate and singer, Courtney Jaye even wrote a song about both the gate and Trump’s field trip to a secure bunker called “Bunker Boy.” As #BabyGate went viral Friday, it was shared thousands of times with pictures of signs and art added to Trump’s ugly deFENCE. Protesters turned Trump’s attempt to keep them out into an art installation showcasing radical protest art.
The fence was completed on June 4; it is unclear how long it is expected to stay up. A Secret Service spokesperson last week told NBC News that areas around the White House would remain closed until Wednesday, June 10, at least. It went up shortly after Trump’s infamous Bible photo op, during which he forcibly removed peaceful protesters in order to complete a trip to St. John’s Church across the street.
It’s unclear how long the fence will stay up and whether or not Trump and his minions will remove the beautiful art from it beforehand, but until then, the art will multiply as protests continue. Crowds are sharing not only protest signs and art advocating for racial justice but using the fence as a memorial space for those lives that have ended as a result of police brutality.
“The fence outside the White House has been converted to a crowd-sourced memorial wall — almost like an art gallery — to black men and women who lost their lives at the hands of police. Hundreds are strolling, looking, adding names and paintings and posters,” wrote Hannah Natanson, a journalist with The Washington Post.
Here are some images of the fence-turned-art gallery.
Messages are attached to the security fence on the north side of Lafayette Square, near the White House, in Washington, DC on June 8, 2020.
Banners and signs are hung on a fence at Lafayette Square near the White House, during ongoing protests against police brutality and racism, on June 7, 2020 in Washington, DC.
Signs are left in front of the White House's recently erected security fence now turned into a memorial against police brutality and the death of George Floyd, during a peaceful protest on June 7, 2020 in Washington, DC.
A message is attached to a tree on the north side of Lafayette Square, near the White House, in Washington, DC on June 8, 2020.
A woman is seen in front of placards on the security fence on the north side of Lafayette Square, near the White House, in Washington, DC on June 8, 2020
A woman is seen in front of posters and placards on the security fence on the north side of Lafayette Square, near the White House, in Washington, DC on June 8, 2020.
A woman looks at messages attached to the security fence on the north side of Lafayette Square, near the White House, in Washington, DC on June 8, 2020.
Messages are attached to the security fence on the north side of Lafayette Square, near the White House, in Washington, DC on June 8, 2020
