Homophobic Vandals Deface WorldPride Mural In Sydney CBD
Image: The WorldPride mural by graffiti artist Scott Marsh near Wynyard station in Sydney CBD. Image: Scott Marsh/Facebook.
Homophobic vandals defaced a WorldPride mural near Wynyard station in Sydney’s CBD on Wednesday night.
Trigger Warning: This story discusses anti-LGBTQI comments, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.
The mural by graffiti artist Scott Marsh, portrayed a man in leather gear, wearing a teddy bear head, holding a beer can and lounging on a Pride flag. It was commissioned by YCK Laneways, which describes itself as “a consortium of independently operated retail, hospitality and entertainment businesses around York, Clarence and Kent Streets.”
On Wednesday, in two separate attacks, vandals splashed paint to cover up the mural. The words “leave the kids alone” were scrawled on the mural.
NSW Police Investigating Vandalism
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The vandalism followed posts on social media by conservatives and some social media influencers targeting the Pride mural.
In a statement to the media, NSW Police said they were investigating the defacement and urged members of the public with information to contact Crime Stopper on 1800 333 000.
According to the police, an unidentified man who was wearing a black hooded jumper, green pants and white sneakers was seen around the mural at the time it was defaced.
Conservative Social Media Users Target Mural
A post by YCK Laneways on their Instagram page with a video of the mural was inundated with hateful messages.
“I opt out of being included with these sick people,” one person said. “This is disgusting. You should be absolutely ashamed of this. There is NOTHING prideful about this,” another comment said. “Shame on you! This picture doesn’t belong on public land for kids to see,” a third posted.
One woman exhorted men to deface the mural. “CALLOUT TO ALL THE MEN!!!!! Go to Wynyard and paint over this filth!!!!” she posted, which is what appears to have been done.
@moeyreacts This is getting too much! #fyp #sydney #fypsydney #westernsydney #australia #aussie #sydneywest ♬ original sound – MoeyReacts
A TikTok user, who goes by the handle MoeyReacts, posted a video of the mural titled “This has to be stopped”. In the video, the user says, “at what point does inclusiveness pass too far,” terming the mural “disgusting.” The video ends with the Tiktoker saying, “If we keep letting them push the boundaries, it keeps getting worse and worse.”
In subsequent videos of the defaced mural, the TikTok user posts, “Wow, the people of Sydney have spoken. Power to the people,” and calls on his followers to “cancel” the artist.
Anti-Queer Rhetoric
Feels like Saint George all over again 😔
last night was fucked, sorry for reawakening that bad juju during pride. pic.twitter.com/Ym2JqFmCwq— scott_marsh (@Scottie_marsh) February 22, 2023
For many, the defacement recalled the vandalism of the Saint George mural, depicting the late singer George Michael, in Erskineville, after the 2017 marriage equality vote.
“Feels like Saint George all over again. Last night was fucked, sorry for reawakening that bad juju during pride,” Sydney-based graffiti artist Scott Marsh, who painted the Saint George mural, said on Twitter.
Marsh said that the YCK Laneways mural was initially supposed to depict Russian President Vladimir Putin. “This work was originally supposed to be of Vladimir Putin as a Russian bear, drinking a white Russian. The property owner gave that design a “hard no”. So now it’s Putin in a bear mask,” Marsh said.
“The only people that I’ve really seen complaining about the now vandalised YCK Laneways Pride mural near Wynyard station are straight people that are using the old “What about the children?” argument to voice their anti-queer rhetoric,” said a Twitter user.
I guess if it was a scantly covered very thin woman lounging around in some fancy branded lingerie, it would have been ok. So maybe two pictures go up to test which is more offensive and attracts vandalism. Either that or paint it somewhat higher to be out of reach of mischievous hands
I hope the mural can be restored and that the perpetrators can be apprehended.
Just goes to show how stupid these people are when they scrawled “Leave the kids alone” doesn’t it?
Did they learn nothing from the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sex Abuse? This commission revealed in all it’s filth that the vast majority of Child Sex Abuse is perpetrated by Members of the Most Conservative Organisation in Australia and the rest of the World: Popes, Archbishops, Cardinals, Priests and other garbage posing as decent Human beings within Religious businesses and that they are closely followed by Close Family Members and other Trusted relatives.
That Conservative Politicians, and NO they are not all members of the Liberal Party of Australia, have condemned that mural, just as they do anything which does not comply with their religious beliefs, is hardly surprising as many of these self-styled Pillars of Society, Good Christian/Jewish, Muslim Family men and women are up to their necks in Child Sex Abuse, Domestic Violence behind closed doors and some of them dress up as Priests, Pastors, Rabbis and Imams.
I’m disgusted with the vandals. What gives them the inclination to vandalize a mural portraying a member of our community and not the various billboards showing half naked cis women advertising bras and panties? Screams double standard to me!