Donald Trump’s supporters made a fashion statement at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee this week, donning ear bandages in a show of solidarity with the party’s presidential nominee.
Trump narrowly escaped an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, last weekend. He appeared at the RNC for his first public address following the shooting wearing a bandage where the would-be assassin’s bullet grazed his right ear. Trump’s supporters quickly started taping mock bandages to their own ears as well.
The bandages varied from simple white medical-looking ones, to others sporting the US flag with a caption “Trump 2024.” Some bore the message “fight, fight, fight’ – a reference to Trump’s words moments after the Butler shooting. The bandages were made from a variety of materials, such as tissues, paper, and tape.
“We’re helping President Trump set a new fashion statement. We’re standing in solidarity with him for his wound. And we just want him to know how much we love him,” Arizona delegate Susan Ellsworth told Reuters, commenting on the trend.
Another supporter, also wearing a bandage, said he wanted to make sure Trump knew he was “not alone.”
Joe Neglia, also from Arizona, told CBS News he thought the bandages would become “the newest fashion trend” among Trump’s supporters everywhere, much like the red hat with the motto ‘Make America Great Again’.
”We need a symbol about political violence not being acceptable in America,” Texas delegate Jackson Carpenter told the Washington Post.
The bandages were not the only entertaining aspect of the RNC. Wrestling icon Hulk Hogan made jaws drop when he ripped off his shirt on stage during a speech underscoring his support for Trump.
The four-day convention culminated with a prime-time address by Trump himself, in which he formally accepted the party’s nomination to face Joe Biden in the November election. Trump said he completely rewrote his speech following the Butler shooting, changing it from taking aim at Biden’s policies to trying to unite the nation by sharing his own plans for another term in office.