By Karen Matthews
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio grabbed a roller Thursday to paint Black Lives Matter in front of the namesake Manhattan tower of President Donald Trump, who tweeted last week that the street mural would be "a symbol of hate."
De Blasio was flanked by his wife, Chirlane McCray, and the Rev. Al Sharpton as he helped paint the racial justice rallying cry in giant yellow letters on Fifth Avenue in front of Trump Tower. Activists watching chanted, "Whose streets? Our streets!"
The mayor announced the plan to paint Black Lives Matter in front of Trump Tower last month after earlier saying the slogan would be painted on streets at several locations around the city. Trump responded via Twitter that the mural would denigrate "this luxury Avenue" and "further antagonize New York's Finest." De Blasio tweeted back that Black Lives Matter is "a movement to recognize and protect the lives of Black people."
Rahima Torrence, 20, who was among the people slapping yellow paint onto Fifth Avenue, said that even though the mural might be a symbol, "it's the beginning of something more." She said the location in front of Trump's own skyscraper "shows that we matter and it shows to him that you can't ignore us."
Washington, D.C. was the first U.S. city to get a giant yellow Black Lives Matter mural when Mayor Muriel Bowser had it painted on the street leading to the White House. Bowser said the painting was intended to show solidarity with Americans outraged over the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Trump lived in Trump Tower before he took office as president but has spent little time there since. He changed his official residence from New York to Florida last year. His business empire is still headquartered there.
______
Associated Press video journalist Joe Frederick contributed to this report.
In a TV interview Sunday, Yellen didn't rule out President Joe Biden acting on his own to try to avert a first-ever federal default.
North Carolina lawmakers on Thursday approved and sent to the governor a ban on nearly all abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, down from the current 20 weeks, in response to last year’s overturning of Roe v. Wade at the U.S. Supreme Court.
Associate Justice Clarence Thomas joins other members of the Supreme Court as they pose for a new group portrait, at the Supreme Court building in Washington, Oct. 7, 2022. A Republican megadonor paid two years of private school tuition for a child raised by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who did not disclose the payments, a lawyer who has represented Thomas and his wife acknowledged Thursday. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and three other members of the far-right extremist group were convicted Thursday of a plot to attack the U.S. Capitol.
Florida Republicans on Wednesday approved bills to ban diversity programs in colleges and prevent students and teachers from being required to use pronouns that don't correspond to someone's sex, building on top priorities of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.
New York state is banning natural gas stoves and furnaces in most new buildings in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Authorities in the U.S. and Europe arrested nearly 300 people, confiscated over $53 million, and seized a dark web marketplace as part of an international crackdown on drug trafficking that officials say was the largest operation of its kind.
Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan has stepped down shortly after apologizing for accepting a payment of $10,000 per month from a consultancy firm for a marijuana company.
U.S. and Mexican officials have agreed on new immigration policies meant to deter illegal border crossings.
Newly opened records that belonged to Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens give the public a behind-the-scenes glimpse at his decades on the court, including the tense struggle over the 2000 presidential election and major cases on affirmative action and abortion.
