Anti HRO Vandalism in Jacksonville's Five Points Area


A construction worker was fired today for vandalizing the site that his company was working to renovate in the heart of Five Points, Jville's most LGBT friendly neighborhood. The man vandalized a public art project sponsored by the owner of the building, arts advocate Steve Williams, crossing over its transfriendly message. Fortunately the whole episode was caught on cell phone video. Check out the details after the jump.

Published May 4, 2016 in News - MetroJacksonville.com




The video which ran on Facebook throughout most of this morning gained outrage and traction amongst area residents, amplified through a web of social networking throughout the cultural and arts communities as well as Jacksonville's LGBT community.

Jimmy Midyette (a frequent poster and contributor at MetroJacksonville) sent out the following letter detailing the story development.  He also indicated that the Jacksonville Coalition for Equality would most likely be issuing a formal statement later on today.



Good afternoon,

Yesterday, two local artists,  Nicole Holderbaum and Martin Torres, painted a beautiful mural in Five Points at the old Peterson’s 5 and Dime.  It was appreciated by the LGBT community and the building’s owner, Steve Williams.  Sadly, this morning, one of the workers of the construction company was seen defacing and vandalizing the sign.  Steve had the foreman dismiss the worker at once.

For your interest and use, I attach the pictures that I took yesterday and this morning.  Please let me know if you have questions.  

Steve Williams made this comment on Facebook:  "anyone who is incapable of respecting ALL humans are NOT welcome on my property"

I believe the recent stories from North Carolina, about Target, and our own HRO make this very relevant in Jacksonville.  Transgender people should be free to use the restroom of their choice and not be subjected to harassment.

Thanks,
Jimmy



The story will develop in the comments below: Here is an image of the mural before the defacement:



This article can be found at: http://dev.metrojacksonville.com/article/2016-may-anti-hro-vandalism-in-jacksonvilles-five-points-area


Metro Jacksonville

Copyright MetroJacksonville.com