Anti-LGBTQ Vandalism Runs Rampant in Spokane
An LGBTQ youth center in Spokane, Washington, was vandalized for three nights in a row, with nearby houses and businesses also targeted.
An LGBTQ youth center in Spokane, Washington, was vandalized for three nights in a row earlier this week, with an LGBTQ-supportive partner organization vandalized after it hosted a “pop-up Pride” event in support of the center.
The Odyssey Youth Movement facility in Spokane’s South Perry neighborhood appears to be the target of vandals who have taken issue with the organization’s mission.
Earlier this month, on October 5, the rainbow crosswalk outside the facility and a sign for Odyssey Youth Movement were vandalized with paint.
Vandals — though it’s not clear if they were connected to the defacement of the Odyssey Youth Movement sign and crosswalk — also attempted to paint over a Pride flag mural in Riverfront Park, in the central part of the city on that night.
On October 6, the center’s windows, doors, and signs were spray-painted with hate speech and divisive messages.
On October 7, a bystander reported that a black pick-up truck left back skid marks — commonly referred to as “burning rubber,” in which a person uses their truck to deface part of a road — over the Pride flag crosswalk, which was still covered in paint from two nights prior, according to Spokane NBC affiliate KHQ-TV.
The bystander, a neighborhood resident, reportedly interrupted the action on the night in question.
The incidents come after the Pride mural in front of the LGBTQ youth center was defaced back in September — actions that appear to indicate that the Odyssey Youth Movement was deliberately targeted.
“The fact that this has happened, now, three nights in a row, and the fact that this happened a month after the initial vandalism as well, this is a pattern, this is a repeat, which is very intimidating, to say the least, and terrifying, to say the most,” Ian Sullivan, the executive director of Odyssey Youth Movement, told KHQ.
Sullivan added that the acts appear “designed to make LGBTQ+ youth and young adults feel unwelcome and othered in their own community.”
“We’re all saddened to hear that someone continues to vandalize the new rainbow crosswalk and Odyssey Youth facility,” Michelle Weaver, the South Perry Neighborhood and Business Association president, said in a statement. “Hate runs counter to our values here in the Perry District.”
The Spokane Police Department is investigating. It is unclear whether those responsible may face hate crime or bias charges if they are ever arrested.
Last Thursday, Odyssey Youth Movement held a “pop-up Pride” event in the South Perry District on October 12, inviting locals to check out local businesses supporting the LGBTQ community, including Wishing Tree Books, a local bookstore that was co-sponsoring the pop-up event.
Wishing Tree Books encouraged residents in a Facebook post to come to the event and sign a community poster or purchase greeting cards sending well-wishes to Odyssey Youth Movement, and to wear their “best and brightest rainbow attire.”
The business later added in a follow-up post thanking those who attended.
“It was wonderful to see your flag-waving, rainbow-wearing, sticker-sharing, KINDNESS-SPREADING selves last night!” the post reads. “WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR YOU.”
Wishing Tree Books was vandalized later that night, with someone ripping down the Pride flag hanging from its front porch, smashing pumpkins on its lawn, and throwing eggs at the building, according to Spokane-area radio station KXLY.
Janelle Smith, the owner of Wishing Tree books, told CBS affiliate KREM that she was “not angry so much as just sad and worried for people,” especially for the youth served by Odyssey Youth Movement, who may not feel safe due to the repeated vandalism.
Additional acts of vandalism have targeted other houses. Paul Dillon, a candidate running for the District 2 seat on the Spokane City Council, shared Ring doorbell camera video with KXLY showing a masked person walking onto his front porch and yanking down the Pride banner hanging there.
Jan Shannon, another area resident, shared video from her own house’s Ring camera with KREM, which reported that the footage showed three people, dressed in black, stealing her Pride flag.
“I just don’t understand the hate,” Shannon said, adding that the repeated acts of vandalism are making some people uneasy.
“The LGBTQ community in the neighborhood at large now is kind of under attack,” Spokane City Council Member Zack Zappone said, adding that he intends to introduce a resolution next week to denounce acts of anti-LGBTQ hate and call on police to increase patrols in the area.
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
