Leading German Magazine Publishes Cover Showing Trump Beheading Statue of Liberty

Caution: Graphic

Even though it’s an illustration it’s so graphic we have decided to not show it in full above.

A leading and well-respected German investigative magazine’s latest cover features an image of President Donald Trump holding a bloodied machete in his left hand, and the bleeding head of the Statue of Liberty in his right hand. The caption: “America First,” Trump’s latest motto.

Der Spiegel, the popular German magazine, also has an animated version on its website that shows the blood actually dripping from the Statue of Liberty’s head. And, if that wasn’t enough, this, which is brilliant:

BuzzFeed News reports: “Edel Rodriguez, the Cuban-born American artist who designed the cover, told BuzzFeed News that he wanted the message to be direct: “Trump is beheading the American democracy.”

Just in case it wasn’t clear enough.

If the image looks slightly familiar, it should. Buzzfeed’s Tasneem Nashrulla reports Rodriguez is the same artist who created these images for TIME magazine:

The image has quickly been making its way around social media. Here’s what some folks are saying:

UPDATE:
Rodriguez just gave an interview to The Washington Post:

Edel Rodriguez came to the United States from Cuba as a political refugee in 1980. Like many immigrants, he was angered by President Trump’s executive order temporarily banning entry to the United States for travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries and refugees from around the world.

“I was 9 years old when I came here, so I remember it well, and I remember the feelings and how little kids feel when they are leaving their country,” Rodriguez said. “I remember all that, and so it bothers me a lot that little children are being kept from coming to this country.”

 

“It’s a beheading of democracy, a beheading of a sacred symbol,” Rodriguez said, noting that the Statue of Liberty represents the United States’ history of welcoming immigrants. “And clearly, lately, what’s associated with beheadings is ISIS, so there’s a comparison” between the Islamic State and Trump. “Both sides are extremists, so I’m just making a comparison between them.”