Is Donald Trump Judas? Mexicans To Burn Sculpture Of US Presidential Candidate For Easter Celebration

Donald Trump has been called many names this election cycle, but soon he will earn a new title: Judas.

An effigy of the Republican presidential front-runner will hang in a public square in Mexico during the Easter weekend, the Guardian reported Friday, so Mexicans can burn the sculpture as part of their holiday celebration. The tradition, which originally came from Spain, involves lighting explosives inside figures meant to represent Judas Iscariot, who the Bible says betrayed Jesus Christ for 30 pieces of silver and then hanged himself.

Typically, these Judas figures represent prominent Mexicans, and burning them allows people in Mexico to convey frustration with politicians or other public officials. But this year, Leonardo Linares, an artisan in Mexico City who makes papier-mache “Judas” figures, told the Guardian Trump caught his eye.

Trump has courted controversy throughout the 2016 campaign by repeatedly making anti-Mexican and anti-Muslim statements in addition to comments that many have labeled as racist and sexist. These types of remarks made Trump “an ideal candidate” for Judas, Linares said.

“With all of the stupid things he has said about Mexicans, I thought people would like to see him burning as Judas,” Linares added. “I think he’s just saying these things to become famous. Who knows if he actually believes it.”

This is far from the first time Mexicans have expressed their opinions about Trump. There have been memes, cartoons and piñatas featuring the controversial Republican, and Mexican officials have spoken out against him as well. The Mexico City Legislature even voted earlier this month, asking the Mexican government to bar Trump from entering the country.

But now people can send The Donald up in flames. The ritual of burning Judas figures is supposed to symbolize Christ’s victory over evil, which some in Mexico said is a fitting meaning for Trump.

“I think his figure would outsell that of any Mexican politician at the moment,” Linares said.

While the tradition has declined in popularity in Mexico, the choice of the effigy is seen as an indicator of Mexican citizens’ feelings about public officials. In addition to his disparaging comments about Mexicans, Trump has promised to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and force Mexico to pay for its construction, a proposal that has not endeared him to many Mexicans.

In previous years, Linares said he has sold figures resembling former U.S. President George W. Bush and ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. This year, in addition to Trump, he said he will also light a figure meant to look like a masked fighter from the Islamic State group.

When asked how ISIS compared to Trump, the artist replied: “They’re the same.”