One of Donald Trump’s most polarising policies has become a reality – of sorts.
A wall has materialised around the newly crowned Republican nominee’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, much to the amusement of tourists and passers by who have flocked to the site to catch a glimpse.
The square, six-inch high structure is complete with a tiny barbed wire fence, toothpick mounted American flags and ‘keep out’ signs, and is the handiwork of LA-based artist Plastic Jesus.
Drawing inspiration from news, current affairs and cultural issues, the artist - who is also responsible for the ‘No Trump anytime’ parking signs that have been erected the city - tells SBS he finds the businessman-turned-reality star-turned-politician "pretty scary".
"With my work I try not to attack people personally but rather through this, attack his policy," he says, "I thought this was a good way to draw attention on how crazy his idiotic idea of a wall is."
"Building a wall around anything isolates it, if you want to get heavy about it we can look at the trouble in the US and the threat to people, and that threat generally isn't coming from outside the borders, it's American citizens within the US.
"There are 32 people killed a day with handguns in the US, that's way, way more than any terrorist threat [here] since 9/11," he adds.
Born in Britain, the artist has been living in the US for the past nine years and says many of his local friends are originally from Mexico, South America and other places across the globe. "We're all immigrants here," he notes, "To think building will make a great improvement to the country is just crazy."
Trump, who is currently in Ohio for the National Republican Convention, has been heavily criticised for his promise to erect a US$5-10 billion wall along the US-Mexican border in an effort to stem illegal immigration.
According to his campaign website, Mexico is expected to fork out the money for the construction “to ensure that $24 billion continues to flow into their country year after year”.
The figure he cites is in reference to the money Mexican nationals earn in America and send back to their families across the border, the transactions of which Trump pledges to block if the sender can't first prove that they are in the US legally.
It remains to be seen what reaction any material policy will elicit should Trump be voted into the top office come November, but his miniature Hollywood version has seen an "amazing, positive, funny, appreciative" response according to Plastic Jesus.
"There's been a few insults from Trump supporters thrown at me as well, but I don't care about those because I'm British and we do insults far better than anyone," he jokes.
Tune in to #TheFeedSBS at 7.30pm Monday - Friday on SBS 2, stream live, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, or Vine.
Through award winning storytelling, The Feed continues to break new ground with its compelling mix of current affairs, comedy, profiles and investigations. See Different. Know Better. Laugh Harder. Read more about The Feed
Have a story or comment? Contact Us
