An LGBTQ+ center that calls itself a “resource center for [Brigham Young University] students and anyone else in need” recently held an event where a painting depicting President Donald Trump’s head being served on a platter was on sale, and a piñata of Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, was available for children to hit.
“A painting of Donald Trump’s severed head on a platter was found for sale alongside decorative Molotov cocktails at a Pride event in Provo hosted by the Cougar Pride Center, which describes itself as an ‘LGBTQ resource for BYU students,'” Kai Schwemmer, a BYU student and official in the College Republicans of America, wrote in an April 14 post on X.
In a subsequent post on X, Schwemmer said, “Also featured: a Piñata of Representative [sic] @BasedMikeLee. Held less than 15 minutes from where Charlie Kirk was killed, items like the ones sold here are an upsetting sign that little has changed since, and that desensitization to violence has only increased.”
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On its website, the Cougar Pride Center says it plans “large-scale events — including Pride in April and our Drag Pageant in October,” adding that the group works “for progress at BYU and in the community at large.”
Local outlet KUTV reported, “Outrage has grown online after images and video from a Pride event in Provo showed a piñata resembling U.S. Sen. Mike Lee being batted by children, a painting of President Donald Trump’s severed head on a platter, and decorative Molotov cocktails for sale.”
The decapitated head of Trump painting and the piñata of Lee were at an April 11 Pride in Progress event, held at Provo Memorial Park and put together by the Cougar Pride Center, an independent LGBTQ+ organization for BYU students and community members, KUTV reported.
BYU distanced itself from the event in an April 15 post on X, writing, “This is not a BYU group, not a BYU-sponsored event, and did not happen on BYU campus.”
The Cougar Pride Center told Fox News Digital, “We are not associated with this artist and do not condone violence of any kind.”
The artist of the decapitated head of Trump painting, Sav Kubensis, whose work was titled, “Liberation with the Head of Hegemony,” told KUTV that her art is protected under the First Amendment.
“While my art may not be politically correct, it isn’t a call to action or a threat — it is an expression of my 1st Amendment Right,” Kubensis said. “Not unlike Mike Lee’s social media posts mocking the assassination of a Minnesota lawmaker last year.”
Kubensis also told KUTV, “My work is highly symbolic and may not appeal to everyone, but my LDS grandma doesn’t have anything bad to say about it.”
A post on Instagram from Kubensis about the painting, which also depicts Trump’s eyes as gouged out, says, “Historically, removing someone’s eyes has served as a brutal form of political punishment or revenge. Used to incapacitate rulers and punish traitors, blinding was a standard practice in the Middle Ages to prevent a man from leading armies.”
Lee reposted photos and videos from the event from another account on X, asking, “How does @BYU feel about this?”
A BYU spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement, “The group that you referenced is not affiliated with Brigham Young University. The event did not take place on BYU campus, nor was it sponsored by the university in any way. “
Reached for comment, a White House spokesperson said, “These sick freaks need to seriously get their heads examined and seek psychiatric help to treat their severe and debilitating case of Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Lee for comment.
