HOW LEGO FANS ACCIDENTALLY SPARKED GEN Z DEBATE OVER WHITE HOUSE REMODEL

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Gen Zers are tearing down Lego White Houses in response to President Donald Trump’s East Wing demolition in a new TikTok trend.

When Tyler Murphy, a 21-year-old from Indiana, shared a TikTok video of himself tearing off part of his Lego White House set, he thought a few followers might get a laugh. Instead, the clip racked up over 702,000 views—and unwittingly became one of the first viral reactions to a historic moment: the demolition of the White House’s East Wing.

Murphy told Newsweek: "I figured I might as well try to make people laugh about it, even though it seems a little dystopian, but I never expected it to blow up the way it did."

His post, part protest, part punchline, quickly became a lightning rod for both humor and political commentary among Gen Z viewers.

"Much to my surprise, there were people who thought it was funny but also found out about the whole situation from my TikTok, which I think really shows the power of social media and how Gen Z communicates," Murphy said.

The White House Demolition

The White House confirmed on Wednesday that demolition crews had begun razing the East Wing to make way for a new 90,000-square-foot ballroom proposed by President Donald Trump.

A White House official told Reuters: "We can confirm that the entire East Wing is going to be modernized and renovated to support the ballroom project." That project is expected to cost around $200 million.

While the Trump administration has dismissed criticism as "manufactured outrage," the teardown—expected to be completed by the weekend—has already taken down offices used by former first ladies and their staff and drawn fire from Democrats and preservation groups.

Still, work began on Monday, proceeding without a formal green light from the National Capital Planning Commission, the federal agency tasked with reviewing such major projects in Washington.

But while lawmakers and watchdog groups weighed legal objections and the general public debated the pros and cons of the pending ballroom, social-media users turned demolition into content.

Murphy’s video is one of many that meme-ified the moment. The viral attention on it captures how Gen Z social-media reactions have become a natural side effect of political moves and news. Some users posted clips of their Lego sets in dramatic slow motion, while others layered satirical audio clips over montages of the East Wing being ripped off plastic miniatures.

"It feels like the reins are slipping in context to what we have a say in government-wise," Murphy said. "I know a lot of people, including myself, used the memes and jokes about the White House demolition to not only share the embarrassment and unease from the administration, but to also share what was happening as TikTok memes and trends are how a good portion of Gen Z seem to get their news."

The White House in Washington D,C. Credit: GETTY IMAGES

Murphy, who describes himself as "a little on the liberal side" despite growing up in a conservative area, said he has had disagreements over politics, but the demolition seemed to cut across divides.

"It seems like we can both agree that the demolition of the White House was a shock," he said.

According to Murphy, the comment section of his viral TikTok quickly filled with political debate from across the spectrum.

"As someone who likes to understand both sides, [it] really highlighted what far right conservatives and moderates or leftists feel about it and their perspectives," he said.

Haydn Koeller, a 30-year-old video editor and photographer based in Cincinnati, Ohio, also saw his similar quip at the White House demolition go viral on TikTok.

"Honestly, I was mostly speaking to nothing in the post," Koeller told Newsweek. "I just thought it would be funny to throw the Lego on the ground. It's somehow the least political video that has to do about politics I could possibly make right? Because whether you're cheering on the administration tearing down the East Wing, or are very upset about it, or don't really care, it's funny to see a Lego explode on the floor.

"I think that will always be something that resonates with people."

He said that while some viewers have been "fighting in the comments section," for the most part, the clip has been received well, with most messages from other TikTok users being described as civil.

Lego has since retired its White House models, but Murphy and Koeller's reconfigured set has become something of a totem for how younger Americans are processing government decisions—less through cable news, and more through short-form videos and satire.

"I like to stay tapped into politics," Murphy said, "but there are moments where reaction videos on social media tell you what’s going on before anything else."

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