A leftist climate change activist was arrested in New York City on Wednesday afternoon after spray-painting “USA” over a 45th presidential seal in Trump Tower.
Per Fox, “Nathaniel Smith, 36, a Brooklyn resident, was arrested over the act of vandalism.”
He is charged with third-degree criminal tampering and possession of a graffiti instrument.
In the clip below, Smith is seen wearing a shirt that reads, “Join or Die” as he kneels in front of the defaced seal. He then unravels a banner that says “Game Over” before agents, who are reportedly with the Secret Service, apprehend him.
As he was escorted away, Smith began shouting, “This is your country. This is your country. This is our country. This is our planet. This is our country. This is our planet.” He continued, “You cannot ruin it without comment. They are ruining the planet for profit.”
Meanwhile, another apparent activist accosted security, telling them, “Do not touch him” and asking for the name and badge number of one agent who was handcuffing the perpetrator.
WATCH:
The group behind the stunt, Extinction Rebellion, also targeted the Charging Bull statue on Wall Street on Tuesday to commemorate Earth Day, and they have also staged protests at Tesla facilities.
Newsweek reports,
The climate change activist, who has not been named, told Newsweek, “I did this because I am an American. It is my duty to stand up for my country, and my Earth, when a government becomes destructive of our right to life.”
Extinction Rebellion is an international environmental activist movement that employs nonviolent civil disobedience to disrupt normal life, aiming to pressure governments into taking action on climate change.
On Earth Day on Tuesday, members staged several high-profile protests, including one at Wall Street’s iconic Charging Bull statue. They also targeted a Tesla showroom in Manhattan, despite the Trump administration’s crackdown on protests of the electric car maker, writing messages in spray paint in opposition to CEO Elon Musk‘s Department of Government Efficiency.
Extinction Rebellion told Newsweek, “The protester wore a t-shirt with the words “Join, or Die”—a phrase rooted in the legacy of our nation’s founders, who understood that unity was essential in the face of tyranny. They recognized the need to stand together and had the courage to rebel rather than watch their freedom perish. It was a call to resist a government marked by chaos and cruelty, and to begin building alternative structures capable of repairing the damage being done to the country.”
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