Fifteen headstones were vandalized with blue spray paint at a historically Black cemetery in Austin sometime over the weekend. This photo, posted to Twitter by CBS Austin’s Jordan Bontke, was captioned, in part, 15 headstones at the Evergreen cemetery were vandalized. PARD believes it happened sometime over the weekend.
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Fifteen headstones were vandalized with blue spray paint at a historically Black cemetery in Austin sometime over the weekend. This photo, posted to Twitter by CBS Austin’s Jordan Bontke, was captioned, in
… more
Photo: CBS Austin’s Jordan Bontke Via Twitter
Photo: CBS Austin’s Jordan Bontke Via Twitter
Fifteen headstones were vandalized with blue spray paint at a historically Black cemetery in Austin sometime over the weekend. This photo, posted to Twitter by CBS Austin’s Jordan Bontke, was captioned, in part, 15 headstones at the Evergreen cemetery were vandalized. PARD believes it happened sometime over the weekend.
less
Fifteen headstones were vandalized with blue spray paint at a historically Black cemetery in Austin sometime over the weekend. This photo, posted to Twitter by CBS Austin’s Jordan Bontke, was captioned, in
… more
Photo: CBS Austin’s Jordan Bontke Via Twitter
‘AIDS’, other graffiti spray painted on headstones at historically Black cemetery in Austin
Community and city leaders showed up Wednesday to clean up 15 headstones that had been vandalized in blue spray paint at a historically Black cemetery in Austin.
One of the graves at Evergreen Cemetery were tainted with the word “Kirk,” others appeared to say “AIDS” and one was ruined by a sideways 8, according to Jordan Bontke with CBS Austin affiliate KEYE-TV.
15 headstones at the Evergreen cemetery were vandalized. PARD believes it happened sometime over the weekend. A small group is working to gather people for a vigil here at 6PM @cbsaustin pic.twitter.com/LbVfRb2FSg
— Jordan Bontke (@JBontkeCBS) September 21, 2020
John Nixon, a spokesman for Austin Parks and Recreation Department, said the damage was discovered and reported Monday, prompting people to check in on their loved ones’ graves.
“This is not just a random act of vandalism, there is a purpose, there is a purpose behind this,” Natalie Marshall, who has relatives buried in the cemetery, told KEYE-TV.
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Established in 1926 as the first cemetery for Austin’s Black community, athletes, educators, civil rights and business leaders are among the almost 12,000 inhabitants.
Nyeka Arnold, a co-founder of Black Austin Coalition, told the Austin American-Stateman’s Hojun Choi that the organization has been taking care of the cemetery since August and this was “like a slap in the face,” adding that they want to install security cameras to keep something like this from happening again.
“When this incident happened, it brought East Austin out,” she said. “We’re still here, you just don’t see us because we’re surrounded by white people and white buildings, but we’re still here.”
Parks and recreation division manager Tonja Walls-Davis told Choi she’s been in talks with the community and Black Austin Coalition for increased security, but is not allowing them to put their own cameras up right now, adding that “if you put them up, they would only be allowed to be put up on the monument that you own. So you can’t have surveillance of the whole cemetery.”
Nixon said the damage does not appear to be racially motivated, but the Austin Police Department is investigating the incident.
in Houston
Source : chron.com
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https://thehoustonforum.org/houston-news-aids-other-graffiti-spray-painted-on-headstones-at-historically-black-cemetery-in-austin/
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