President Donald Trump has ordered the removal of the longest-standing anti-war protest in U.S. history.

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday, Trump appeared unaware that the White House Peace Park in Washington, D.C., existed and, upon hearing about it, demanded its immediate destruction.

“I didn’t know that. Take it down. Take it down today, right now,” Trump told White House staffers.

Known simply as the White House Peace Vigil, the tent and anti-war protest signs in Lafayette Park have been maintained by volunteers around-the-clock since June 1981.

Originally founded by activist William Thomas as a protest against nuclear weapons, the peace vigil has continued to be a site of general anti-war messaging and stands as a prominent symbol of free speech directly across

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