- A mural in Los Angeles appears to depict YouTube star Logan Paul during his infamous "suicide forest" video being hanged.
- It appears to have been created by a local street art collective.
- People generally think the mural is over-the-top. To those unfamiliar with Paul's antics, it can be viewed as homophobic.
A mural painted in Los Angeles is stirring controversy because it's believed to depict disgraced YouTube star Logan Paul being hanged.
The painting has been in Los Angeles's Echo Park neighborhood since late January. It's an illustration of someone wearing the same outfit Paul wore in his infamous video where he filmed a dead body in Aokigahara, a "suicide forest" in Japan. The character in the mural, like Paul, is wearing a blue jacket and a bright green alien hat.
Paul's video, posted in December 2017, led to an enormous backlash towards the YouTube star. YouTube cut him from its exclusive advertising opportunities, and brands dropped their partnerships with him.
Read more:Another YouTube star took a video of a dead body in a Japanese 'suicide forest'
The mural may have been made by a member of the I Heart Street Art collective, which appeared to take credit for it on Instagram after the street art blog and art agency Impeachment Art said the collective made it. I Heart Street Art did not immediately respond to INSIDER's request for comment.
On YouTube and Twitter, the reaction was mixed. Some thought the imagery of hanging was over-the-top.
ok I just leant that a mural of Logan Paul was painted in Echo Park LA but the painting in itself is graphic. Don't get me wrong I'm not defending Logan yeah what he did in regards to the suicide forest was scummy but that painting is going a bit over the top
— OsG Nightrider (@OsGNightrider) February 12, 2019
Yes! He was punished for what he did, he had his channel terminated but somehow managed to get it back & he received a lot of backlash but you got to remember it's old news no one cares about that it's irrelevant now. I can't speak for everyone I'm just saying
— OsG Nightrider (@OsGNightrider) February 12, 2019
what logan paul did in the suicide forest was awful but painting a mural of him hanging himself makes you no better than him. Not once did I ever tell him I want him to kill himself when I had my podcast. He was wrong doing what he did. he is trying to be a better person. Move on
— Steve Zars (@PositivityCult) February 13, 2019
To some local residents who aren't familiar with Paul, the mural appears to be homophobic. In the mural, the character is wearing a rainbow pride patch on the jacket, just as Paul did in the video.
"I immediately knew what it was for because I saw the pride flag on his shirt, so I immediately knew it was directed at LGBT community and that was heartbreaking,"Buffy Winkler, a local resident, told KTLA 5, a local television station. "I just hope that whoever did it is held accountable for it."
- Read more:
- Noah Centineo stood up for problematic YouTuber Logan Paul, and the internet is breaking up with the actor
- Another YouTube star took a video of a dead body in a Japanese 'suicide forest'
- Logan Paul says his plans to create 'the next Axe' body spray were ruined after his 'suicide forest' video
- YouTube released a movie with Logan Paul less than a year after his infamous 'suicide forest' video