CHICAGO – In another stunning example of a manufactured hate crime narrative collapsing under scrutiny, the burning cross discovered in Chicago's Grant Park earlier this month was not the work of the Ku Klux Klan or right-wing extremists, but a deliberate stunt by a 21-year-old University of Illinois Chicago student seeking to smear President Donald Trump and his supporters.
Merlin Liu (also referred to as Merlin Lu), a senior from Naperville, Illinois, admitted to authorities and in an exclusive interview with NBC Chicago that he constructed the wooden cross, doused it with lighter fluid, set it ablaze around 2:38 p.m. on June 9, and even placed a MAGA hat on it. His goal? To protest what he described as "MAGA Christian nationalists," the "ruling class," and Trump's policies on healthcare and transportation.
The incident initially sparked outrage and swift condemnations from Democratic leaders, who wasted no time linking it to broader claims of rising right-wing extremism. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a vocal Trump critic, decried the scene as evidence of "the seeds of racism and fascism grow[ing] unchecked in our country," invoking the late Rev. Jesse Jackson's words while declaring "hate has no home here in Illinois."
Chicago officials and community figures, including Rev. Michael Pfleger of St. Sabina Church, echoed the alarm, calling it a "hate crime" reminiscent of KKK intimidation tactics and offering rewards for information. Media outlets amplified the story, with images of the flaming cross going viral as supposed proof of lingering Southern-style bigotry in the heart of liberal Chicago.
But as is often the case in these high-profile incidents, think Jussie Smollett's infamous "MAGA country" hoax in the same city, the facts tell a different story. Liu, described in social media commentary as a "socialist gay Asian," confessed it was all a solo political statement. He acknowledged the historical connotations of burning crosses but claimed it wasn't racially motivated.
Police have taken Liu into custody as they investigate the incident as arson and a potential hate crime. No charges have been announced yet, raising questions about whether the soft-on-crime approach in Democrat-run Chicago will result in meaningful accountability.
Critics were quick to point out the double standard. Had the perpetrator fit the preferred narrative of a white conservative, the national media frenzy and calls for federal intervention would likely have been relentless. Instead, many on the left have gone quiet as the hoax unravels.
This episode comes amid heightened political tensions following Trump's return to the White House, with left-wing activists increasingly resorting to provocative stunts to paint opponents as extremists. Chicago, long plagued by actual violence under progressive leadership, now adds another fabricated racial incident to its list of embarrassments.
