Florida Pastors Arrested for Blocking Removal of ‘Black History Matters’ Art
Friday, police arrested two Florida pastors after being accused of trying to block the crews of painting on a street fresco “Black History Matters”.
Authorities said the men had attempted to prevent FDOT (Florida Department of Transportation) workers from painting on the fresco outside the Woodson African American Museum of Florida in Saint Petersburg, Specrum News 9 reported that the article noted that wall painting had been seen later covered with painting.
“The two men are pastors. They are Reverend Andy Oliver, 45, from the united Methodist Church of Allendal and Minister Benedict Atherton-Zeman, 59, of the Unitarian Universalist Church,” said the report.
Video sequences shows The pair fell in the street and one of them seems to pray while the lights of the first stakeholders collapsed behind them:
The police said they were arrested after blocked the crews by sitting in the middle of the street and refusing to move when they were told to do so.
An aerial photo shows The wall before it is painted:
According to Fox 13, the two are responsible for pedestrian obstructions or to hinder traffic and obstruction.
The point of sale has detailed the circumstances surrounding the recent arrests:
Governor Ron Desantis signed the Senate bill 1662 in June. The fdot secretary, Jared Lost, described the bill as an effort to maintain free transport facilities and away from political ideologies.
FDOT orders cities and counties to identify and potentially delete works of art on roads which can violate the state traffic control directives. State officials have said that “non -standard surface marks” can cause distractions or misunderstandings on the road and compromise the safety of drivers and pedestrians.
The recent mural and one for the LGBTQ community were due, among others, which should be deleted on Thursday, WTSP reported on Monday.
“In Tampa, 47 wall paintings – including a back, blue wall painting outside the Tampa police seat – will also be deleted in the next two weeks. In a press release, the city said:` `We continue to encourage and celebrate community art projects in spaces where they can really shine ”, says the article.
