A videotape released to the public last year during the 2016 U.S. presidential election campaign, in which then-presidential candidate Donald Trump bragged about grabbing women by the genitals and trying to have sex with an unidentified married woman, has resurfaced — this time on repeat for 12 hours on a billboard on the National Wall in Washington, D.C.
The video was shown Friday by the women’s group Ultraviolet to protest President Trump’s attitudes towards women, according to Reuters.
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A year ago, The Washington Post released the video, which captured a 2005 conversation between Trump and Billy Bush, then of “Access Hollywood.”
Following the video’s release, Trump faced public outrage and criticism from Democrats and Republicans alike. Asked by a reporter about the recording Saturday, Trump said: “That’s just locker room,” reiterating his response to the tape last year.
To mark the anniversary of the tape, Ultraviolet received permits from the National Park Service, a spokesperson for the agency told The Washington Post. The activists then set up a truck with a 10-by-16-foot-screen to play the video, along with sound and subtitles, from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. ET right near the White House.
They also hosted a rally at Lafayette Square called “Rally to Grab Back”, referencing Trump’s words in the video, to coincide with the display. People showed up holding signs with phrases including “I Stand With Survivors,” and “Grab Back.”
“We want to remind the American people who the president really is and who he said he was on that tape: a proud, self-professed sexual predator,” said the group’s campaign director, Emma Boorboor, in an interview with Reuters.
People on the mall stopped to view the display. Alisha Porter told the Post that it was “great” and that it was a good way to shed light on sexual harassment.
Others defended the president. Bea Cliatt told Reuters, “I think he’s good for the American people, not just women.”
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Trump apologized for his comments last year, saying he wasn’t a “perfect person” and that he regretted his words.
On Friday, Trump issued new rules that will allow more employers to opt out of paying for birth control for women, a move Boorboor told Reuters it wasn’t a surprise.
“This is a prime example of how, when you elect a man who is very hostile towards women… he’s now in office actively pursuing an anti-woman agenda,” she said.
The group also hosted a live stream on Facebook which saw more than 135,000 views by Saturday evening.
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