A dummy resembling Elon Musk was beheaded onstage during a rock music festival in Chicago this weekend.
The performance at Riot Fest came on the same weekend over 100,000 people assembled in Arizona at a memorial for Conservative activist Charlie Kirk, whose shooting prompted many commentators and politicians to call for a reduction in violent political rhetoric.
Why It Matters
Kirk’s memorial service at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona took place on Sunday. His death on September 10 led to widespread condemnation and calls from many conservative influencers to stop the demonization of right-wing commentators.
Much of Kirk’s work over the last two years had focused on making sure that President Donald Trump was elected in 2024. The pair were both represented onstage being graphically harmed at Riot Fest.
What To Know
The dummy of Musk, which was dressed in his signature Department of Government Efficiency shirt, was decapitated during a performance by heavy metal band Gwar at Riot Fest on Saturday.
During another performance, a dummy of President Donald Trump received similar treatment, with both dummies designed to spray fake blood at the audience.
This is not the first time the rock band has performed a stunt like this, with fans sharing footage of a dummy of then-President Joe Biden being beheaded at a previous show.
Musk was previously the target of several protests earlier this year, when he worked at the Department of Government Efficiency, with vehicles produced by Tesla, of which Musk is CEO, vandalized and sometimes destroyed.
What People Are Saying
Former British Prime Minister Liz Truss told Newsweek of Kirk’s assassination: “I think what has happened on the extreme left, basically using intimidation, even being prepared to assassinate somebody, shows how wrong they’ve gone, and how kind of anti-civilizational they are. So it was a huge shock. Somebody that, you know, I’d recently met, that we were all talking about just suddenly gone like that.
“This is deliberate intimidation and the celebration of his killing by people on the left has been absolutely shocking, including the president-elect of the Oxford Union. You know this is something that people on the left are justifying…they’re saying that the end justifies the means. And I don’t think you see anything like that on the right.”
What Happens Next
Musk’s relationship with the president seems to have recovered somewhat since their fallout earlier this year, as the pair were seen talking amicably at Kirk’s memorial.
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