OAKLAND, Calif. — A bust of Breonna Taylor was vandalized in Oakland, California.
The Oakland Police Department is investigating after large pieces of the statue were found broken off sometime over the weekend, KGO and KTVU report.
The sculpture was made by artist Lee Carson to honor the 26-year-old EMT who was shot and killed in her apartment by Louisville police officers in March.
The deaths of Taylor, George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery prompted countless people across the country to take to the streets over the summer to protest police violence against people of color.
Carson told KTVU that he hoped the piece would energize the Black Lives Matter movement, which seeks to eradicate white supremacy and intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities.
Carson told KGO that the vandalism felt like an attack on Taylor and those fighting against racial injustice.
The statue is made of clay, concrete, wood and foam, and was reportedly installed in the downtown area this month. Along with a bust of Taylor, it includes the words “say her name Breonna Taylor,” which has become a rallying cry.
Carson told KGO that he intends to repair the statue as soon as possible and he may cast it in bronze this time.
