Mural honoring crash victims painted over in Norwood, residents outraged
Neighbors say it's a disrespectful erasure of a decades-old neighborhood memorial.
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A beloved mural honoring six young people who died in a 1991 car crash has been painted over in Norwood.
Neighbors say it's a disrespectful erasure of a decades-old neighborhood memorial.
John Arbelo said he was stunned when he walked down Perry Avenue and found the mural — which had been on East 204th Street for more than 30 years — covered with a new mural.
“This is just disgusting and disrespectful for this neighborhood,” Arbelo said. “It had a sunset right here and it had their names painted across.”
The mural was created after a speeding car struck a tree near Woodlawn Cemetery in November 1991. Six people, ages 15 to 20, were killed. One of the victims was 15-year-old Anne Wren.
Mike Wren, Ann’s brother, spoke to News 12 by FaceTime from New Jersey.
“Ann was 15 at the time. She was pretty big in junior varsity basketball at St. Barnabas. They were all just kids, literally just kids starting out in life,” he said. “Unfortunately, that day all of them were lost.”
Neighbors say the person or people who painted over the mural left the victims’ names off to the side — a change family members call a slap in the face.
“It’s disrespectful because it’s very clear that it’s a memorial,” Wren said. “At the very least, the folks behind it should have reached out to family or someone involved to have a discussion about how to keep that memory alive.”
An employee at a hardware store attached to the building declined to say who painted over the wall and asked News 12 to leave.
News 12 contacted the city’s Department of Buildings, which said it generally does not have authority over changes to murals unless a building is in a historic district or the painting is an advertisement.
Neighbors and family members say they hope to locate the original artist and have the mural restored.
“I pray to God if you see this, bro, paint it again. I will help,” Arbelo said.
