Long Beach residents were outraged over the weekend after a statue of Martin Luther King Jr. was defaced with hate symbols.
A photo shared on social media showed the statue of the civil rights icon had been marked with a swastika and SS Bolts.
According to the Long Beach Police Department, the vandalism is being investigated as a hate crime.
Officers rushed to the statue at 1950 Lemon Ave. in Martin Luther King Jr. Park at 3:20 p.m. Friday after receiving a call alleging hate or bias-driven vandalism.
Police had no leads on any suspects in the vandalism as of Monday afternoon.
Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia described the graffiti as “horrific” in a tweet, assuring locals that authorities are looking for the perpetrators.
“Our MLK statue is a symbol of hope and justice for the community,” the mayor said. “This hate and desecration has no place in our city.”
“Hate has no home in Long Beach,” said Councilwoman Suely Saro, who posted a photo of the statue being cleaned on Saturday.
The local AOC7 Neighborhood Group organized a peaceful march to protest the hate following the vandalism.
A small crowd gathered near the statue, with some holding banners reading “no tolerance for hate in Long Beach” and “white silence is violence.”
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