DC’s many prankster activists turn anger into street theater
WASHINGTON >> In the nation’s capital, it can be hard for protesters to stand out. A group of 50 people — or even 500 — holding signs and shouting hardly merits a second glance in this city of protests.
That’s why Washington activists have to get creative. There’s an ethos of performative prankster-style protest wired into the District of Columbia’s history, dating back decades.
This confrontational street-theater school is flourishing with the Trump administration as its nemesis. Each month brings new acts of political theater — some confrontational, some deliberately absurdist.
“It can take a serious issue into more of a playful place,” said Robin Bell, who regularly projects disparaging messages onto the outside of the Trump International Hotel. “Oftentimes we visualize the absurdity of the situation.”
In January, a group of activists associated with political pranksters The Yes Men passed out dozens of fake Washington Posts , with detailed articles depicting President Donald Trump resigning and fleeing the White House. For about a month last fall, a Robert Mueller investigation-themed ice cream truck roamed Washington, passing out free scoops with names like IndictMint Chip and Rocky Rod Rosenstein.
While some protests are designed to get attention, others hide in plain sight like Easter eggs for the observant. Within sight of the White House, a realisticlooking street sign declares the street Khashoggi Way, after Jamal Khashoggi, the dissident Saudi journalist killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. About 10 of these signs have been scattered around Washington.
Activist Claude Taylor said he planted his first sign in front of the Saudi Embassy, where it lasted 24 hours before being removed. But he’s pleased the sign outside the White House has lasted so long — more than a month — since his protest is against both Khashoggi’s murder and what he considers Trump’s soft response. Taylor also drives around town carrying an inflatable effigy depicting the president as a giant rat .
“It’s got to be art, it’s got to be creative. That’s what gets people hooked,” said Adam Eidinger, perhaps Washington’s most high-profile political provocateur.
Eidinger is one of the District’s public faces for marijuana legalization and is known for disruptive protests. In 2017, his group passed out 1,000 joints on Capitol Hill, but only to IDcarrying congressional staffers. He says he still owns a small jail cell on wheels for use in political stunts.
Eidinger lists the advantages to this sort of theatrical approach. It’s more enjoyable and inspiring for the participants, more likely to garner media attention and go viral. Equally important, it’s more likely to annoy opponents.
“One of the goals is to have a psychological impact, to get into their heads,” he said.