Trump orders takedown of longtime protest tent at White House
Source: The Hill
09/05/25 7:15 PM ET
President Trump ordered the removal of the White House Peace Vigil on Friday, marking an end to a 44-year protest against the nation’s nuclear weaponry and warfare. A reporter informed the president of the ongoing protest — now manned by Philipos Melaku-Bello and a group of rotating volunteers — Friday in the Oval Office, describing the long-standing tent as an “eye sore” for visitors supported by the “radical left.”
“I didn’t know that. Take it down. Take it down today, right now,” Trump told staffers inside the White House.
The president has pledged to erase homeless encampments across Washington, D.C., in an effort to clean the streets ahead of the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding. Unhoused residents have faced a swarm of police officers and National Guard soldiers in recent weeks who have detained them for sleeping outside.
However, the peace vigil in Lafayette Park stands out as a permanent stakeout for free speech and is widely known as the longest continuous act of political protest in U.S. history. Activist William Thomas propped up the free standing structure in June 1981 parallel to the North Lawn, where dignitaries and world leaders arrive for discussion and dissent.
Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5489497-trump-orders-takedown-peace-vigil-white-house/
From the Library of Congress entry - The Anti-Nuclear Peace Vigil tent that has been sitting right across from the White House for 39 years, has someone there 24/7 rain or shine, and in all kinds of weather
Created / Published
2020-06-19.
From Wikipedia -
The White House Peace Vigil on March 30, 2025 with The White House in the background.
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