Police are investigating an act of vandalism against a bust in downtown Oakland honoring Breonna Taylor.
The ceramic sculpture, which was erected in Latham Square just two weeks ago with the phrase “Say Her Name Breonna Taylor” on a plaque, had sections smashed off Saturday, artist Leo Carson said.
Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency room technician, was shot by Louisville police when officers entered her home in March during a botched drug raid. Protests spread across the country in the name of Taylor and George Floyd, as well as other Black Americans killed by police.
Carson, who lives in Oakland, got tipped off to the vandalism on Saturday and headed to the scene. He found the damaged bust, its broken pieces placed back on the pedestal.
“It looked like someone struck it with a baseball bat or something very heavy,” Carson said.
“I was really devastated emotionally. I was sad and angry,” he said. “Really, it’s an attack on Breonna Taylor and Black Lives Matter and it’s racist intimidation.”
