The rainbow crosswalk located at the intersection of 14th St and Woodland St in East Nashville will be repainted this weekend after being defaced last week.
Join us on the 13th at 9 am to repaint. Vandals won't hold us back. We have all the paint. #MetroCouncilNash #LGBTQCaucus_Nash pic.twitter.com/Pd7nTe1yDg
— Emily Benedict (@emilyfor7) July 8, 2024
On July 2, surveillance cameras overlooking the intersection where the rainbow crosswalk was painted captured what appeared to be a man in a white Ford transit van drive over the crosswalk while dumping black paint out of his driver’s side window onto the pavement, defacing the painted crosswalk.
“The East Precinct’s Investigations Unit is working to identify the person responsible for defacing/vandalizing the rainbow crosswalk at S. 14th and Woodland Streets that was created last Saturday at the end of Pride Month,” the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) said in a press release.
“Surveillance video shows the driver of a white Ford van pour a container of black paint over the crosswalk at 12:25 p.m. on Tuesday, July 2. The driver is a white man wearing a black t-shirt. Anyone with information about the driver or the van is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463,” MNPD added.
Metro Nashville Councilmembers Clay Capp and Emily Benedict announced Monday that the crosswalk would be repainted on Saturday, July 13 by another group of volunteers.
The defacing of the crosswalk came just three days after it was painted by a group of volunteers on June 29.
The crosswalk was approved after a collaboration between the Metro Nashville LGBTQ Caucus, the Nashville Department of Transportation, Metro Nashville Councilmember Clay Capp, and Nashville Pride.
While Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s office denied having an official role in the implementation of the crosswalk in the city, the mayor sympathized with members of the LGBTQ community after the crosswalk was defaced.
“Hate has no place here. I appreciate the leadership of [Emily Benedict] and so many others who worked to create this, and I’ll work with them to ensure it’s fully restored. Love is more powerful than hate,” O’Connell said.
Watch the surveillance footage:
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
I’m waiting for the ‘Free Palestine’ crosswalk.
I like the suggestion of painting the Confederate battle flag on a cross walk. To all the clueless morons who think that flag represents racism….that is EXACTLY how I view your stupid rainbow queer flag.
Metro must allow every advocacy group, for whatever cause, to have the same ads in crosswalks, according to “the equal protection of the laws” (14th Amendment).
You know, “the rule of law and no one is above the law”.
The last time I checked, the rainbow belonged to God. (Gen. 9:13; Ezek. 1:28; Rev. 4:3) It was never intended for immoral purposes.
Be a real shame if the local car clubs got together and held a burn out contest. Just cover your license plates temporarily.
Cities ought to stay out of these public debates. If the cross walk was painted as the Stars and Bars or the Confederacy, would it be allowed? Would it be repaired if vandalized? The latter has a more a connection to Nashville than does the latter. This is asked is the city in doing something like this trampling on the beliefs or other groups. Aside from the promoting an agenda, the painted crosswalk looks hideous. It looks like something belonging on a playground. Related, that is a large paint swath, since it was not painted professionally, does the paint contain sand or some other abrasive so it doesn’t become slipper in wet weather? Sand blasts the paint off, repaint it white. Enough pandering to a group.
I am so glad to read this. Thank you whoever did that.
God bless those who refuse to accept and stand up to this Satanic agenda. We do not bow down before the homofascists. Let them repaint that blasphemous abomination every day until it is permanently destroyed!
crosswalks are not advertising zones. Now it’s costing taxpayers for get this ridiculous stuff repainted. Way to waste money metro…..