Marilyn Manson Aims Fake Rifle At San Bernardino Crowd, Calls It 'Act Of Theater'
SAN BERNARDINO (CBSLA) — Shock rocker Marilyn Manson is defending his decision to point what appeared to be a fake rifle at a concert crowd in San Bernardino as part of his act.
Manson - confined to a wheelchair after an on-tour accident in September that left him with a broken leg - aimed what turned out to be a prop microphone at the crowd at the Glen Helen Amphitheater while being rolled around on stage as he sang "We Know Where You F----- Live".
Photos and video of the stunt were posted to social media just hours after a gunman opened fire on a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, killing at least 26 people.
A statement from Manson released Monday afternoon called the performance "an act of theater in an attempt to make a statement."
"In an era where mass shootings have become a nearly daily occurrence, this was an act of theater in an attempt to make a statement about how easily accessible semi-automatic weapons are and how seeing them has become normalized," Manson wrote, adding the prop microphone was approved by a "police officer".
San Bernardino was the site of a mass shooting in December 2015, when two people opened fire on the Inland Regional Center, killing 14 people and seriously injuring 22 others.