A permanent rainbow crosswalk in downtown Calgary has once again been spray painted, but this time Calgary Pride said it won’t be removing the graffiti.
In a tweet Sunday evening, Calgary Pride explained that “BLM” — the acronym for Black Lives Matter — had been spray-painted on the crosswalk.
It’s not known when the vandalism occurred or who the culprit was.
Calgary Pride has said it has requested the spray paint not be touched or changed for the time being, instead saying they support the Black Lives Matter movement and message.
Calgary Pride has been made aware of the BLM spray paint on the rainbow crosswalk downtown. We’ve requested that it not be touched or changed for the time being. The Pride movement was born inside the courage of Black Trans folks who fought back in the face of oppression. 1/2
— Calgary Pride (@CalgaryPride) September 28, 2020
“The Pride movement was born inside the courage of Black Trans folks who fought back in the face of oppression,” Calgary Pride stated.
“Black Lives Matter. Indigenous Lives Matter. Trans Lives Matter. Their stories matter and they cannot be erased.”
Calgary’s rainbow and Trans Pride crosswalks have been defaced in the past, once with the violent message: “Shoot A F*****,” and another time with the messages “Lost” and “Lust.”
Read more:
Calgary police charge man after Pride crosswalk vandalism
The rainbow and Trans Pride crosswalks were painted on Stephen Avenue immediately east and west of Centre Street in 2019.
Zoom Painting has committed to painting and maintaining the crosswalks for up to ten years.