Protester Attempts to Set Himself on Fire Outside 'Dictator' Trump's D.C. Hotel

A protester reportedly attempted to set himself on fire outside Trump's D.C. hotel.

January 18, 2017

A man was reportedly injured outside the Trump International Hotel in Washington D.C. Tuesday night after attempting to set himself on fire, WRC-TV reported. The man, who has not been identified, said he was trying to ignite himself in protest of the nation's election of "a dictator."

"We have a dictator that's been elected," the man told reporter Shomari Stone Tuesday night. When a small explosion startled reporters nearby, the man told bystanders that the use of "denatured alcohol" meant the fire was no longer a threat.

"I was trying to light myself on fire as an act of protest," the man added. "To protest the fact that we've elected somebody who is completely incapable of respecting the constitution of the United States."

The initial report said the man was "taken to a hospital with burns" and offered no additional information on his condition. However, a separate report from the Washington Post citing a "public safety source" referenced a "45-year-old man who had been using a lighter and an accelerant" just outside the hotel. That man, though not confirmed to be the same one seen in video footage from WRC-TV, was transported to a hospital with third-degree burns on "about 10 percent" of his body.