City Paints Black Lives Matter Mural Outside Trump Tower

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — New York City is moving forward with Mayor Bill de Blasio's plan to install a Black Lives Matter mural in front of Trump Tower, the mayor announced Thursday.

City workers blocked off a stretch of Fifth Avenue near Trump Tower early Thursday morning to prepare the block for painting. De Blasio arrived at the Midtown tower to help kick off the painting efforts later around noon.

"Listen, here’s what matters – here’s what matters to remember – we are making a statement today of what we value in New York City. We are making a statement of what matters. When we announced – when I announced that we would be doing this here, President Trump said that we would be denigrating the luxury of Fifth Avenue. Let me tell you, we are not denigrating anything. We are liberating Fifth Avenue," de Blasio said.

Painting was supposed to take place last week, but had to be postponed for "logistical" reasons, de Balsio said during a press briefing before the July 4 weekend. The mayor personally pushed for plans to install a mural in front of President Donald Trump's namesake Midtown skyscraper as part of an initiative to install Black Lives Matter murals throughout the city.

When asked last week why the city was moving forward with the mural despite a $9 billion budget shortfall, de Blasio described the mural as a "small cost, big impact" proposal. The mayor also admitted that the symbolic effort is simply a "small measure" to acknowledge and respect the contributions of Black people to New York City and the country as a whole.

"There is much more we have to do — with our commission on racial justice and reconciliation we are going to look at the big things we have to do, the structural and institutional racism we have to address," de Blasio said.

President Donald Trump took to twitter last week to condemn the city's plans, likening the Black Lives Matter mural to a "symbol of hate."

"NYC is cutting Police $'s by ONE BILLION DOLLARS, and yet the [mayor] is going to paint a big, expensive, yellow Black Lives Matter sign on Fifth Avenue, denigrating this luxury Avenue. This will further antagonize New York's Finest, who LOVE New York & vividly remember the horrible BLM chant, 'Pigs In A Blanket, Fry 'Em Like Bacon,'" Trump tweeted.

De Blasio announced plans this June to paint at least five Black Lives Matter murals throughout the city — one in each borough — following Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser's decision to install a similar mural in front of the White House. Two additional murals, at Trump Tower and one planned for Harlem, push the total mural count up to seven.