Protesters both for and against President Donald Trump got into a brawl at the site of his Walk of Fame star on Hollywood Boulevard on Thursday night.
It started over an argument about one anti-Trump protestor’s use of the n-word, according to TMZ, which was caught on camera as individuals were gathered around the site of Trump’s recently replaced star.
On Wednesday morning, another anti-Trump individual police have identified as Austin Clay, 24, turned himself in for destroying the star with a pick axe, which is the second time that’s happened.
The first incident occurred in October 2016, at the hands of James Otis, just weeks before Trump was elected president.
Workers have already replaced the star, which was covered with plywood on Thursday night to protect it while the cement sets.
No one was arrested following the brawl on Thursday night, TMZ reported, but plenty of chaos was caught on camera.
Singer/songwriter Joy Villa was at the star’s location near the corner of Hollywood and Highland, smiling next to a larger-than-life size Trump cutout and singing the national anthem.
Villa wore a pro-life dress to the Grammy Awards in January, featuring a depiction of a fetus surrounded by all the colors of the rainbow.
The video then cuts to a group of protestors started chanting, ‘F*** Donald Trump,’ with text over the footage that reada, ‘This is going to get ugly I have a feeling.’
Then, a Trump support can be seen confronting a man who repeatedly says the n-word.
‘I didn’t say e-r though,’ he says. ‘I can say n***a if I want to. I can say n***a if I want to.’
Protestors for and against President Donald Trump brawled on Thursday near his newly-replaced star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, over an anti-Trump man saying the n-word
Singer/songwriter Joy Villa was at the star’s location near the corner of Hollywood and Highland, smiling next to a larger-than-life size Trump cutout and singing the national anthem
Trump’s star was already replaced on Thursday, but covered with plywood for protection
The video shows a group of protestors chanting, ‘F*** Donald Trump,’ with text over the footage that reada, ‘This is going to get ugly I have a feeling.’
The Trump supporter then says, ‘Get out of my face,’ as the anti-Trump protestor speaks loudly, saying, ‘What you gonna do?’ with his mouth just centimeters from the other man’s face.
Two other men then come into frame, shove each other, and the fight is on.
At one point in the video, a man in a black shirt, which could be the man from the beginning of the video arguing over using the n-word, can be seen getting kicked in the head while he’s on the ground.
Two other men then come into frame, shove each other, and the fight is on, with fists flying
Throughout the clip, what sound like it’s the person recording the video keeps saying, ‘He’s a Marine,’ but it’s not clear who he’s referring to
At one point in the video, a man in a black shirt, which could be the man from the beginning of the video arguing over using the n-word, can be seen getting kicked in the head on the ground
Throughout the clip, what sound like it’s the person recording the video keeps saying, ‘He’s a Marine,’ but it’s not clear who he’s referring to.
The Trump star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is a common spot for political unrest to boil over.
A call came in at approximately 3.30am Pacific on Wednesday reporting vandalism to the star, Los Angeles Police Officer Ray Brown told DailyMail.com.
This is the second time the star has been destroyed by someone using a pick axe.
The suspect, Clay, turned himself in to the Beverly Hills Police Department at around 4.30am, a BHPD spokesperson told DailyMail.com.
Clay was booked on suspicion of felony vandalism and was being held on a bond of $20,000.
Trump, who was honored with the star in January 2017, has not publicly commented on this incident of vandalism of the star.
Trump’s star has been defaced, demolished or otherwise tampered with many times since he declared his candidacy for president in 2015.
Police say a man named Austin Clay turned himself in, related to the early-morning destruction of Donald Trump’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Wednesday
A pick axe was used to destroy the star, Los Angeles Police confirmed to DailyMail.com
Donald Trump’s star on the Walk of Fame is shown here, without vandalism and defacing, near the corner of Hollywood and Highland in Los Angeles on December 10, 2016
Donald Trump (left) is seen here with wife Melania Trump and their then-10-month-old son Barron after Trump was honored with the 2,327th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on January 16, 2007
The last time the star was destroyed with a pick axe was in October 2016, right before Trump was elected president, by a man named James Otis.
Otis, who was dressed as a construction worker and also used a sledge hammer at the time, said his goal was to remove the star, auction it, and donate any money raised to the women who accused Trump of sexual assault leading up to the presidential election.
Otis pleaded no contest to a felony vandalism charge related to the incident in February 2017, was placed on probation, sentenced to 20 days of community service and ordered to pay $4,400 in damages and lawyer’s fees.
Some time after the incident, a pull up bar was placed over the debris in the spot where Trump’s star used to sit, presumably to protect passersby from tripping over the rubble
The damage that resulted from the last time Trump’s star was demolished with a pick axe, and a sledge hammer, in October 2016 is shown here
Another incident of vandalism includes the symbol for ‘mute,’ which indicates sound has been turned off on a device, being spray painted on the star in June of 2016, which was speculated to have been done in protest of Trump’s antagonistic language used during his campaign
Other incidents of vandalism include a reverse swastika being spray painted on the star in January 2016, and the symbol for ‘mute,’ which indicates sound has been turned off on a device, being spray painted on the star in June of 2016.
Speculation around the spray painting of the ‘mute’ sign included the possibility that it was meant to protest Trump’s antagonistic language used during his campaign.
That incident was video taped and posted on YouTube with the title, ‘Trump muted in Hollywood blvd.’
The Anti-Defamation League, whose mission is to stop the defamation of Jewish people, explains the distinction between forward and reverse-facing swastikas, as follows:
‘The swastika as adopted by the Nazis has “arms” that hook to the right; later white supremacists maintained this tradition.
‘Though sometimes more ignorant white supremacists accidentally render swastikas “backwards,” the backwards or left-pointing swastika is typically the hallmark of someone not actually that familiar with white supremacist iconography.’
A gold-colored toilet, shown here when it was placed by Trump’s star in May 2016, was part of a larger art installation, created in reference to the Guggenheim offering to loan the president a golden toilet after turning down a request for a specific piece of Van Gogh art
Political statements made surrounding Trump’s star have also included the placing of a miniature wall around its edges, seemingly in protest of Trump’s calls to build a border wall
Ana Martinez, who is the vice president of media relations for the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, said she’d prefer if people would stop this kind of behavior, in an interview published in November by Real Clear Life.
‘I’d like people to know that the Walk of Fame is a historical landmark and I would very much like it if people didn’t damage any stars,’ Martinez said.
‘I know that people have their personal political views about President Trump, and feelings about other stars, but please, it would be great if people could refrain from vandalizing his star or any other stars.’
‘I’d like people to know that the Walk of Fame is a historical landmark and I would very much like it if people didn’t damage any stars,’Ana Martinez, who is the vice president of media relations for the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, said; Trump’s star is shown here being reinstalled in October 2016
A board covers the spot where Trump’s star usually sits in the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Political statements made surrounding Trump’s star have also included the placing of a miniature wall with barbed wire around its edges, seemingly in protest of Trump’s calls to build a border wall, and nearby placement of a gold-colored toilet featuring the words, ‘Take A Trump’ spray painted on its tank.
The gold-colored toilet, placed by the star in May 2016, was part of a larger art installation, created in reference to the Guggenheim offering to loan the president a golden toilet after turning down a request for a specific piece of Van Gogh art, as reported by the Washington Post.
Gregg Donovan, a British-born actor living in Santa Monica, showed up later on Wednesday to ‘protect’ what remains at this moment of Trump’s demolished star, and was photographed holding a sign that read ‘Keeping America Great! Trump 2020.’
Gregg Donovan, a British-born actor living in Santa Monica, showed up later on Wednesday to ‘protect’ what remained then of Trump’s demolished star, holding a ‘Trump 2020’ sign
Gregg Donovan, a British-born actor living in Santa Monica, showed up later on Wednesday to ‘protect’ what remained at that moment of Trump’s demolished star, and was photographed holding a sign that read ‘Keeping America Great! Trump 2020.’
Donovan noted that other stars nearby were on the surrounding walls, and not on the ground, while talking with CBS News.
‘I think they should probably put [the stars of President Ronald] Reagan and President Trump on the wall for safekeeping,’ he said.
‘This is the second time, so something has to be done.’
Donovan said he would stay by the star as long as he had to, to stand guard.
‘Whatever it takes,’ he said. ‘I’m not going to let anybody do this again, until maybe the police come.’
Donovan is staple on Hollywood Boulevard, often greeting tourists and locals in his signature red jacket and top hat.
Workers are shown here removing rubble to prep it for replacement, which is already complete
Construction workers use a jack hammer to remove the destroyed star of Donald Trump on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Wednesday
It didn’t take long for the demolished star to be completely removed, before its replacement by the Hollywood Chambers of Commerce and the Hollywood Historic Trust began
Curious bystanders watch as workers rebuild Donald Trump’s star on the Walk of Fame
A worker kneels beside what will become the newest replacement of Trump’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, California
Workers have already replaced Trump’s star, doing so as crowds stopped to watch and take photos of the process.
The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce has said it has no plans to permanently remove the star, despite its repeated targeting by vandals and activists, and a longstanding petition with nearly 50,000 signatures calling for its displacement.
All of the stars on the Walk of Fame are maintained by the Hollywood Historic Trust.
The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce has said it has no plans to remove the star, despite its repeated targeting by vandals and activists, and a longstanding petition with nearly 50,000 signatures calling for its displacement