City crews to remove red paint after Cornwallis statue vandalized
Posted May 13, 2016 02:40:20 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
HALIFAX – Three days after Halifax Regional Council voted not to debate the use of the name of the City’s controversial founder, a statue of Edward Cornwallis has been vandalized.
Spokesperson Tiffany Chase said HRM was notified someone had splashed red paint on the statue that sits in Cornwallis Park sometime overnight or into the early hours of Friday morning.
Chase said crews were looking to remove the paint as quickly as possible.
“We have contacted our contractor that we have on standing offer for graffiti removal,” Chase said. “They will be sending a crew to undertake an assessment and begin work to remove any graffiti that’s on or around the statue.
The Mi’kmaq community have called for the removal Cornwallis’ name from area landmarks because of scalping proclamation issued in Halifax in 1749.
During a passionate council debate Tuesday, councillors narrowly voted to close the discussion.
The statue sits in the district of downtown Halifax Councillor Waye Mason, who tells the Canadian Press the statue has been vandalized before, in 2013, when vandals wrote “FAKE” on the statue in large red letters.
Halifax Regional Police tell News 95.7 a mischief charge is possible for the person who vandalized the statue and its base, but no complaint had been received.
