Mayor displeased by defacing of cultural street painting
Terre Haute Mayor Brandon Sakbun was not pleased when a vandal defaced a street painting celebrating Juneteenth over the weekend.
A motorist squealed his tires over the image just outside the Booker T. Washington Community Center at the intersection of 13th Street and College Avenue.
Sakbun posted on X, “Hatred will not be tolerated in Terre Haute.”
He added, “To the grown man that felt the need to remove street barriers and do burnouts on top of a freshly painted cultural street painting — be better. Your efforts did nothing to hinder the Juneteenth celebrations. Your bigotry is a stain on our city and Hoosier values.”
The Community Center hosted a Juneteenth celebration Saturday afternoon.
Sakbun’s message continued, “It can be frustrating that people turn to hate so fast. Here in Terre Haute we will celebrate all cultural and ethnic groups. … A community grows through love not hate. We will not be taking steps backward in 2024.”
The street painting, which was funded by a charitable organization, has been restored.
