Man who admits setting cross on fire in Chicago park is charged with a hate crime
This grab from a video taken by motorist Keinika Carlton shows a wooden cross engulfed in bright orange flames as it leans against a tree in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, on Tuesday, July 9, 2026. Credit: AP/Keinika Carlton
A 21-year-old man has been charged with a hate crime, arson and other offenses for a cross that was set on fire in a Chicago park, police said.
Merlin Lu admitted to a TV station this week that he was responsible for the recent cross burning in Grant Park. But he insisted that he was protesting President Donald Trump and Christian nationalists and was not using the cross as a historical symbol of hate against Black people.
Lu appeared in court Thursday on four felonies and four misdemeanors, including a hate crime, property damage and burning a cross to intimidate. A judge denied a request by prosecutors to keep him detained.
Defense attorney Alexander Michael told the judge that Lu was exercising free speech in a “foolish manner.” He also disputed that it could be a hate crime against certain Christians.
On June 9, in the middle of the day, Lu created a cross with two pieces of wood, wrapped it in toilet paper, doused it with kerosene and started a fire, Cook County prosecutors said in a court filing. The fire left burn marks on the trunk and limbs of a tree.
Lu told WMAQ-TV before his arrest that his intent was not to intimidate Black people. He said he was protesting the “ruling class” and Christian nationalists who support Trump, and attached a red hat to symbolize the MAGA hat favored by the president's allies.
“I did know about this historical relevance beforehand. But I didn’t know the severity, how racially motivated it may seem from what I did,” Lu said of a burning cross. “Cause my protest has nothing to do with race, nothing to do with gender.”
This booking photo released by the Chicago Police Department on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, shows Merlin Lu, who has been charged with a hate crime and other offenses in the burning of a cross in Chicago's Grant Park. Credit: AP/Uncredited
Someone put a large, multicolored, glass fiber heart with the word, “resilient,” in the place where the burning cross stood in the park.
Lu's LinkedIn page says he has attended college in Indiana and Chicago and was studying chemistry.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 38: State champions On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra, Michael Sicoli and Tess Ferguson recap the the state championships in baseball, boys and girls lacrosse, plus Jared Valuzzi has the plays of the week.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 38: State champions On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra, Michael Sicoli and Tess Ferguson recap the the state championships in baseball, boys and girls lacrosse, plus Jared Valuzzi has the plays of the week.
