World News for Students of English

05-04-2016 15:00

An effigy of Donald Trump spins and fizzes in the sky before finally… his head explodes!

Perhaps not something many of us expected to see today, but it was all part of these Easter celebrations in Mexico City.

The U.S. Republican front runner for the presidential nomination has sparked outrage south of the American border with his controversial anti-immigrant views and repeated attacks on the Mexican people.

Burning effigies here are nothing new, but part of a widespread Mexican Holy Week tradition, where they’re meant to represent Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus Christ, according to the Bible. But effigies are often modelled on unpopular political figures and few are more unpopular here than Donald Trump.

Local resident Miguel Angel Tincono came out for the celebrations. He said the effigy was chosen because Mexicans were truly tired of the nonsense he speaks and are hoping he won’t get elected president.

Similar events are reported to have taken place across the country. They’re thought to hold a symbolic function for uniting communities.

Difficult words: effigy (a model of a person), fizz (to sparkle, to crack), front runner (a person who is in a leading position), spark (to start a fire or to start a reaction), outrage (an extremely strong reaction of anger), figure (a person).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com