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California Couple Who Defaced Black Lives Matter Mural Charged with Hate Crimes

HeadlineJul 09, 2020

In California, two Bay Area residents will be charged with hate crimes after they painted over a Black Lives Matter mural commissioned by the city of Martinez. Video of the Fourth of July incident shows a white woman using a bucket of black paint and a roller to cover two of the mural’s large yellow letters reading “Black Lives Matter.” A white man wearing a red Trump campaign T-shirt and hat looks on, shouting abuse at onlookers.

David Nelson: “This is racism, is what it is. That’s what it is. There is no oppression. There is no racism. It’s a leftist lie.”

Nicole Anderson: “Keep this [bleep] in [bleep] New York! This is not happening in my town!”

If convicted on hate crimes charges, the vandals, Nicole Anderson and David Nelson, could face up to a year in jail. Meanwhile, authorities are investigating who painted the words “White Lives Matter” on a Martinez street three days after the first incident. 

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