A wax museum in San Antonio, Texas, had to pull its Donald Trump statue from public view after repeated incidents in which visitors physically attacked it. Staff at Louis Tussaud’s Waxworks ultimately moved the figure into storage because guests continually punched and scratched it, leaving visible damage.
“It’s a presidential figure,” said Suzanne Smagala-Potts, a spokesperson for Ripley Entertainment, the company that owns the museum. “Sometimes people will take a swipe at them, but they did that with Obama, Bush, and they’ve done it with celebrity figures as well. It’s just something that happens.”
Scratches on the statue’s face were particularly noticeable, according to Ripley’s regional manager, Clay Stewart, who spoke to the San Antonio Express-News, the outlet that first noted the removal. “When it’s a highly political figure, attacks can be a problem,” Stewart said.
The wax museum removed Trump’s figure because people kept punching it.
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Smagala-Potts explained that statues frequently need repairs because visitors cause typical wear while posing with them, especially when people put their arms around the figures for photos.
But she added that “political figures can be a little bit more polarizing, depending on which side of the political spectrum you lead,” saying, “And that’s totally fine. We’re not a political business, we don’t have any bias.”
“And we say, you know, you can take your picture however you’d like,” she continued. “Some people like to take their picture with a thumbs-up; some people like to take a picture with a thumbs-down.”
Smagala-Potts did not give a clear estimate for when the restored Trump statue might return to the exhibit. Stewart told the Express-News that it would likely go back on display when a new statue of President Joe Biden — still being created — is ready to debut alongside it.
Wow. Keep your hands to yourself. Why are left-wingers so violent nowadays?