- A group started a crowdfunding campaign to raise money to fly a 20-foot-tall balloon of President Donald Trump as a baby in a nappy over London.
- London’s mayor on Thursday gave permission for the balloon to fly in Parliament Square when Trump visits on July 13.
- The balloon is set to fly in one of the most iconic areas of the city: right beside the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.
- The group says it plans to ship the balloon to other countries Trump visits so it follows him around.
London’s mayor on Thursday gave a group permission to fly a 20-foot-tall balloon depicting President Donald Trump as an angry baby over London when the president visits the city later this month.
Mayor Sadiq Khan described the stunt as a “peaceful protest.”
The group’s plan is to suspend the balloon above Parliament Square, beside the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, when Trump visits on July 13.
It had launched a crowdfunding page for the project, describing Trump as “a big, angry baby with a fragile ego and tiny hands.” The campaign has raised more than £16,000 ($21,000).
The page also describes Trump as a "racist demagogue who is a danger to women, immigrants and minorities and a mortal threat to world peace and the very future of life on earth," adding: "Moral outrage is water off a duck's back to Trump. But he really seems to hate it when people make fun of him."
The London Evening Standard carried a statement from a spokesman for Kahn: "The Mayor supports the right to peaceful protest and understands that this can take many different forms. His city operations team have met with the organisers and have given them permission to use Parliament Square Garden as a grounding point for the blimp."
The balloon will not be allowed to fly more than 30 meters (98 feet) off the ground, Sky News reported. It will also be subject to authorization from the Metropolitan Police and UK air-traffic authorities.
The group said the goal of the balloon was "to make sure [Trump] knows that all of Britain is looking down on him and laughing at him."
Those who contributed to the campaign could get "Trump Baby" stickers and balloons. The group says that it now wants to raise enough money "to get #TrumpBaby to follow little Donald around the world, haunting his diplomatic engagements wherever he goes," and that any further donations will go toward what it calls the "Trump Baby World Tour."
The balloon will coincide with other protests of Trump's visit to the UK, including the "Stop Trump" march in central London. Its organizers say they expect about 50,000 people.