Several Black Lives Matter murals in downtown Riverside were defaced Monday, increasing concerns of political tensions on an already tense election day.
The murals appeared to have been marked with large lines of black spray paint, according to footage obtained by OnScene TV. One mural portrayed Black civil rights icons such as Harriet Tubman, Marsha P. Johnson and James Baldwin, while another showed a Black woman posing as Rosie the Riveter.
A separate tribute to John Lewis, who died in July, also appeared marred by the paint, as did likenesses of Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, and a colorful depiction of protesters under the words “Black Lives Matter.”
The defacement occurred as many Riverside businesses were boarding up windows in anticipation of potential unrest spurred by what has been deemed one of the most consequential elections in American history.
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