Baltimore. The monument, more than a century old, was paid for with pennies from the school kids of the era. It’s meant to signify the Star-Spangled Banner and it’s now been defaced.
With the words “Racist Anthem” being sprayed near the sidewalk of the statue, as well. I was really hoping that crap was done with but leave it to alt-left loons to prove me wrong.
The executive director of Friends of Patterson Park Jennifer Arndt Robinson stated:
“We were notified early this morning of the incident,” Robinson said. “We are working with appropriate city officials to make sure it is addressed as quickly as possible.”
“While we recognize the issue of freedom of expression, there has to be more appropriate ways to have that conversation,” Robinson said.
A spray bottle was recovered near the scene and sent in for analysts. Hopefully, they’ll find something.
Reginald Moore, city parks director, stated that the damage caused was unfortunate. “We understand the sensitivity of this matter and will work with City Hall and the Friends of Patterson Park to find a solution,” he wrote.
City maintenance workers are busy working alongside the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation to gain a greater scope of the damage.
The 1914 statue, the work of sculptor J. Maxwell Miller, shows two school children holding a scroll that reads: “To commemorate the centennial of the writing of the Star-Spangled Banner, the pupils of the public schools of Baltimore have erected this memorial upon Hampstead Hill where in September, 1814, the citizen soldiers of Maryland stood ready to sacrifice their lives in defense of their homes and their country.”
Earlier that month, Baltimore removed three statues honoring the Confederacy and another of former Chief Justice Roger B. Taney, who wrote the Dred Scott decision upholding slavery. The statues’ removal followed the civil unrest in Charlottesville, Va., over tht city’s Confederate monument.