Trump Chicken
{{Short description|Inflatable caricature mocking the U.S. president}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox artwork
| title = Trump Chicken
| image = Tax March April 15, 2017, U.S. Capitol (33933859081).jpg
| caption = The balloon outside the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. during the 2017 Tax March
| artist = Casey Latiolais
| completion_date = December 2016
| medium = Plastic inflatable
| subject = Donald Trump
| height_imperial = 23
| metric_unit = m
| imperial_unit = ft
| website = {{URL|thetrumpchicken.org}}
}}
Trump Chicken was a Chinese New Year mascot for the Year of the Rooster. It unexpectedly became popular because it looked similar to Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th President of the United States. In the United States, Trump Chicken was often used as a cartoon image reflecting Trump. It is used by both Trump's opponents and supporters. It was designed by Seattle-based illustrator Casey Latiolais.{{cite news|last=Cascone|first=Sarah|url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/donald-trump-rooster-sculpture-new-year-804680|title=Donald Trump Rooster Sculpture Ushers in Chinese New Year|work=Artnet News|date=January 4, 2017|access-date=January 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170105180015/https://news.artnet.com/art-world/donald-trump-rooster-sculpture-new-year-804680|archive-date=January 5, 2017|url-status=live}}
Appearance
Trump Chicken is a fat, white chicken with a human-like face. It had golden feet, eyebrows, and a beak. There was no cockscomb on the top of its head, instead having golden hair, with the left side of the hair subtly raised. The underside of the beak is a red, tie-shaped fleshy crest. The two wings looked closer to the human hands and are raised high to the sides. The difference is that the thumb and index finger of the "left hand" are clasped into a circle, making it an OK gesture; while the right hand extends the index finger and points to the sky.{{cite news|last1=Jiang|first1=Xihao|last2=Sun|first2=Thomas|last3=Campbell|first3=Joseph|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyle/it-s-the-year-of-the-giant-inflatable-trump-rooster-at-one-chinese-factory-idUSKBN14W213/|title=It's the Year of the (Giant Inflatable Trump) Rooster at one Chinese factory|work=Reuters|date=January 12, 2017|access-date=January 15, 2017}}
Background
The origin of the mascot, named the "Trump Rooster" statue by the media, was a 23-foot-tall New Year mascot displayed outside the North America Xintiandi Shopping Center in Taiyuan, China in late December 2016.{{cite news|last=Ives|first=Mike|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/29/world/asia/trump-china-rooster-statue.html|title=China Warmly Welcomes a Giant Rooster With Trumpian Characteristics|work=The New York Times|date=December 29, 2016|access-date=December 30, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161230063003/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/29/world/asia/trump-china-rooster-statue.html|archive-date=December 30, 2016|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}} The over of the mall said that the original design idea was to have the mascot make the "number one" (generally being understood as pointing to the sky) and "OK" gestures to represent business success and good luck. The facial features referred to the images in Angry Birds.{{cite news|url=https://news.qq.com/a/20161230/034267.htm|script-title=zh:山西太原现巨型“特朗普鸡”雕塑 发型手势神似|trans-title=A giant "Trump Chicken" sculpture appears in Taiyuan, Shanxi, with a similar hairstyle and gestures|work=QQ News|date=December 30, 2016|access-date=December 31, 2016|language=zh-CN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231172916/https://news.qq.com/a/20161230/034267.htm|archive-date=December 31, 2016|url-status=dead}} When the mascot was put on display, it was quickly discovered that he resembled Donald Trump. After it became popular on Weibo, many people even went to the exhibition site to take photos.{{cite news|last=Zhang|first=Tianrui|url=http://en.people.cn/n3/2016/1226/c90000-9159387-4.html|title='Trump-style' rooster figure welcomes Chinese New Year in Taiyuan (4)|work=People's Daily|date=December 26, 2016|access-date=December 31, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231085927/http://en.people.cn/n3/2016/1226/c90000-9159387-4.html|archive-date=December 31, 2016|url-status=live}} The shopping mall noticed this trend and took the opportunity to launch products related to this mascot, such as inflatable toys, dolls and other types of souvenirs.{{cite news|last=Serena|first=Dong|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2016/12/28/asia/donald-trump-rooster/index.html|title=Donald Trump rooster statue takes China by storm|work=Cable News Network|date=December 28, 2016|access-date=December 29, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161229091920/https://edition.cnn.com/2016/12/28/asia/donald-trump-rooster/index.html|archive-date=December 29, 2016|url-status=live}} In March 2017, the mascot was spread to the United States. After some anti-Trump activists noticed it on the Internet, they thought the mascot looked very similar to Trump, so they purchased a large number of related dolls and inflatable toys from China and used them in the anti-Trump protests in San Francisco in April.{{cite web|last=Morton|first=Danelle|url=https://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2017/03/the_chinese_trump_chicken_is_coming_to_america.html|title=The Trump Chicken Is Coming to America|work=Slate|date=March 20, 2017|access-date=March 21, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170321041523/https://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2017/03/the_chinese_trump_chicken_is_coming_to_america.html|archive-date=March 21, 2017|url-status=live}} The mascot, known as the "Trump Chicken", became popular in the United States. Various Trump Chicken memorabilia was sold on Amazon and eBay.{{cite news|last=Rossman|first=Sean|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/nation-now/2017/08/10/inflatable-chicken-looks-like-trump-can-yours/557208001/|title=That inflatable chicken that looks like Trump can be yours|work=USA Today|date=August 10, 2017|access-date=August 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811052239/https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/nation-now/2017/08/10/inflatable-chicken-looks-like-trump-can-yours/557208001/|archive-date=August 11, 2017|url-status=live}}
The designer of Trump Chicken, Casey Latiolais, was surprised by the popularity of the mascot. He said he merely accepted a design order from a Chinese real estate developer and completed it, and did not consider using the design to satirize Trump, and that any similarities with Trump were coincidences. He also said that he consulted his family about the design and received approval — including his parents, who voted for Trump in the 2016 election.
Usage in the public
- File:Trump Chicken @ Hawaii State Capitol (43678995015).jpg in Honolulu]]In April 2017, protesters participating in the Tax March used a large number of inflatable Trump chickens as part of their protest.{{cite news|last=Stevens|first=Matt|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/15/us/politics/tax-day-march.html|title=The Tax March Explained: Protesters Hope to Pressure Trump Into Releasing Returns|work=The New York Times|date=April 15, 2017|access-date=April 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170416092550/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/15/us/politics/tax-day-march.html|archive-date=April 16, 2017|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}
- On August 9, 2017, Taran Singh Brar, a Republican-leaning Californian documentary filmmaker, erected a 30-foot-tall inflatable Trump chicken on The Ellipse, south of the White House. Brar said that he placed the Trump chicken in the White House was to protest Trump's "refusal to report his tax returns" and "weakness on North Korea and Putin." It took Brar five months to get approval from the National Park Service to place the Trump chicken.{{cite news|last=Joseph|first=Yonette|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/10/us/politics/trump-giant-inflatable-chicken.html|title=This Is Why a Trump Chicken Was Near the White House|work=The New York Times|date=August 10, 2017|access-date=August 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811194713/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/10/us/politics/trump-giant-inflatable-chicken.html|archive-date=August 11, 2017|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}
- In early September 2017, a 10-foot inflatable Trump chicken was placed by protestors outside Congressman Dana Rohrabacher's office in Huntington Beach, California because he refused to hold meetings with voters.{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/tn-dpt-me-chicken-don-20170909-story.html|title=Activists inflate 10-foot Trump chicken outside Rohrabacher's office in Huntington Beach|work=Daily Pilot|via=Los Angeles Times|date=September 9, 2017|access-date=September 10, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910043054/https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/tn-dpt-me-chicken-don-20170909-story.html|archive-date=September 10, 2017|url-status=live}} Later that month, another inflatable Trump chicken was placed outside Senator Thom Tillis's office in Charlotte, North Carolina, urged him to establish a new law to protect the DACA Dreamers.{{cite news|last=Berky|first=Rad|url=https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/politics/inflatable-chicken-resembling-trump-spotted-outside-tillis-office/275-477138242|title=Inflatable chicken resembling Trump spotted outside Tillis' office|work=WCNC|date=September 19, 2017|access-date=January 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180123163225/https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/politics/inflatable-chicken-resembling-trump-spotted-outside-tillis-office/275-477138242|archive-date=January 23, 2018|url-status=live}}
- In July 2018, anti-Trump protesters placed a 33-foot-tall inflatable Trump chicken dressed in black-and-white prison strips with a label "Prisoner 45" (Trump was the 45th President of the United States) on a boat bound for Devil's Island in San Francisco. Protesters demand Trump release his tax returns or he'll be prisoned.{{cite news|last=Oppenheim|first=Maya|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/trump-chicken-sail-coast-san-francisco-prisoner-trump-baby-a8458956.html|title='Trump Chicken' dressed as a prisoner to sail around San Francisco|work=The Independent|date=July 23, 2018|access-date=July 24, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180724012535/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/trump-chicken-sail-coast-san-francisco-prisoner-trump-baby-a8458956.html|archive-date=July 24, 2018|url-status=live}}
Similar designs
- In March 2017, a New York City-based artist Jeffrey Beebe and BravinLee designed a rat inflatable object called Trumpy the Rat.{{cite web|last=Voon|first=Claire|url=https://hyperallergic.com/366826/protesting-the-president-with-a-trumpy-the-rat-inflatable/|title=Protesting the President with a "Trumpy the Rat" Inflatable|work=Hyperallergic|date=March 21, 2017|access-date=March 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322184930/https://hyperallergic.com/366826/protesting-the-president-with-a-trumpy-the-rat-inflatable/|archive-date=March 22, 2017|url-status=live}}
- In December 2017, the North America Xintiandi Shopping Center in Taiyuan, China displayed a newly designed Trump dog as the mascot for the Year of the Dog.{{cite news|last=Zhao|first=Kexin|url=https://www.guancha.cn/society/2017_12_26_440679.shtml|script-title=zh:今年的“特朗普生肖”来了|trans-title=Here comes this year's "Trump Zodiac"|work=Guancha|date=December 26, 2017|access-date=December 29, 2017|language=zh-CN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229053520/https://www.guancha.cn/society/2017_12_26_440679.shtml|archive-date=December 29, 2017|url-status=live}}
See also
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- {{URL|thetrumpchicken.org|The Trump Chicken}} — {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190315204715/http://thetrumpchicken.org/|date=March 15, 2019}}
{{Protests against Trump footer}}
Category:Caricatures of presidents of the United States
Category:2017 in American politics
Category:Cultural depictions of Donald Trump
Category:Inflatable manufactured goods
Category:Parodies of Donald Trump