Lang
9/4/19
A move is underway to remove posters from downtown Iowa City that use a photo of slain University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts to promote the building of a wall at the southern border of the United States.
The posters began appearing last week. They feature a photo of Tibbetts with the phrase “Can we build the wall now?”, a reference to President Donald Trump’s efforts to erect a wall between the U.S. and Mexico.
Investigators say 25-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, stabbed Tibbetts as she was jogging in Brooklyn in July of 2018. They say he later led them to her body in a cornfield. Bahena Rivera faces a November 12th trial on a 1st Degree Murder charge. If convicted, he faces life in prison.
Tibbetts’ family has asked in the past that her death not be politicized, as she was an avid supporter of immigrants’ rights.
A social media campaign is now calling for residents to take the posters down if they see them. It is not known who is behind the posters.