Trump supporters who painted over Black Lives Matter mural charged with hate crime
They also face a charge of vandalism and possession of tools to commit vandalism or graffiti.
A white man and woman were charged with a hate crime after video footage showed them covering up letters of a Black Lives Matter mural with black paint, according to The New York Times.
Additionally, Nicole Claudia Anderson and David Richard Nelson each face a charge of vandalism under $400 and possession of tools to commit vandalism or graffiti. All of the charges are misdemeanors. Their court date has not yet been scheduled.
The mural was painted on July 4 in front of a courthouse in Martinez, California. A permit was issued to the mural’s organizer by the city. District Attorney Diana Becton said, “The mural completed last weekend was a peaceful and powerful way to communicate the importance of Black lives in Contra Costa County and the country.”
One witness, who was filming the vandalism, asked what the man and woman were doing. Another bystander asked, “What is wrong with you?” Nelson, who wore a red hat and shirt that read, “Trump” and “Four More Years,” claimed racism did not exist. “We’re sick of this narrative,” he said. “The narrative of police brutality, the narrative of oppression, the narrative of racism. It’s a lie. It’s a lie.”
An artist who helped paint the mural said the painting was in direct response to white power fliers that were found throughout the city earlier in the week.
“I think that this is an indication of how much power white supremacy actually has,” Martinez resident Tatiana Ray told ABC7News. “The fact that even having something on the street for one hour, they couldn’t even tolerate that. You know, it was such a threat to have anybody else’s concerns represented by the city and represented by the community.”
If convicted, the pair could face up to a year in jail. Watch the video of the Trump supporters destroying the Black Lives Matter mural below.