Liberal D.C. residents were horrified after a community blog reported a mural of Bernie Sanders had been vandalized and the Vermont Independent’s head had been replaced with that of a frog.
The pics: Last week, local journalist Dan Silverman, who blogs under the “Prince of Petworth” moniker, posted a picture of the defaced mural in the Navy Yard neighborhood of the nation’s capital.
- Silverman reported that it had been marked with a “white nationalist hate symbol.”
- According to artist Shani Shih, the February 2020 mural “affirms the collective power of the people to demand a government that works for them — to bring society out of the darkness and oppression of American and global capitalism and corporate oligarchy, and into a new paradigm based on justice.”
Instagram posts show the work, which features the slogan “Bern the System” and a portrait of the self-declared democratic socialist, has been painted over with the face of the cartoon character “Pepe the Frog.”
- “DISGUSTING,” wrote one commenter, while the D.C. chapter of the socialist International Workers of the World posted a horrified emoji in response on Instagram.
The meme: Pepe the Frog was created by artist Matt Furie, who considered the “peaceful frog-dude” an extension of himself.
- But the cartoon character has in recent years become associated with “alt-right” and white supremacist movements.
- The seemingly innocent figure has drawn condemnation from the Anti-Defamation League and prompted an explainer from presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
After trying unsuccessfully to disassociate Pepe from the “alt-right,” Furie announced in 2017 that he had “killed off” the frog and stopped creating new comic strips featuring the character.
