•Michelle McLoughlinA STYROFOAM model of a hot air-blowing Donald Trump and another of a toothy Hillary Clinton riding the Democratic Party’s donkey mascot are among the skeletons and zombies in a Halloween display that has become an attraction and is stopping traffic in a Connecticut town.
With a little more than a month to go before the US elections on 8 November, history professor Matt Warshauer of West Hartford is using his annual Halloween extravaganza to make a political statement.
Warshauer built a 2,4 metre high cardboard version of Republican presidential candidate Trump’s proposed US-Mexican border wall, complete with models of armed guards, in front of his house.
“It’s a crazy presidential election where it seems politics are out of control,” said Warshauer, who teaches at Central Connecticut State University. “I am making a statement about both parties, the Republican and the Democratic party, but my primary concern is Donald Trump as a president.”
One of the skeletons holds a sign saying, “We were all immigrants,” while another reads, “We are not criminals,” a reference to Trump’s proposals to curb illegal immigration.
US presidential campaigns have often accented the activities leading up to and on Halloween on 31 October, with sales of rubber masks of the candidates or holiday parades featuring election-themed floats. And this year is no exception.
“I hope people take it in the spirit of Halloween, that I am having a little fun and making a political statement,” Warshauer said. –
