A Vox activist is facing a prosecutor’s request for three years in prison for his alleged involvement in the destruction of the feminist mural in Madrid’s Ciudad Lineal district in the early hours of March 8, 2021, coinciding with Women’s Day celebrations. The famous feminist mural entitled “Unity is Strength” appeared that day with black splatters of paint on the faces of the honored women, including Rigoberta Menchú, Rosa Parks and Frida Kahlo. They left a manifesto at the crime scene in which a radical group called Revolutio claimed responsibility for the action. In the note, they called feminism “one of the worst things of our time.”
The prosecutor considers these facts to be a crime against dignity and a crime against artistic heritage. According to legal sources, the trial is scheduled to take place next February. The defendant, who answers to the initials of the LFU, is not just another grassroots activist, but was deputy youth secretary of the party led by Santiago Abascal and ranked 12th on Vox’s list for the Madrid City Council in the previous municipal elections . .
One of the main pieces of evidence against the defendant is that the paint used was purchased with one of his bank cards, according to sources close to the investigation. The events occurred after a discussion in the Ciudad Lineal district, where Vox presented a proposal in January 2021 to remove the mural and replace it with another depicting Paralympic athletes. The proposal was approved with the votes of PP and Ciudadanos.
The controversy continued when Ciudadanos changed his position in the Cibeles plenary session in January and voted for an emergency motion by Más Madrid, which was passed with the PSOE’s positive vote, to keep the original feminist mural. The then deputy mayor Begoña Villacís represented her party’s new position regarding the mural, thereby disavowing the then president of the Ciudad Lineal district, Ángel Niño (Ciudadanos).
According to the prosecutor, the defendant “with obvious contempt for women, helped to paint with black paint the images of all the women depicted in the feminist mural owned by the municipality in the municipal sports center La Concepción.” at number 5 José del Hierro Street. This mural was created to give visibility to some relevant women in history and as a sign of rejection of gender-based violence. The city council considered it to be of artistic or cultural value and the production costs amounted to 10,065.15 euros plus VAT, without expressly waiving any corresponding compensation.
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“The act of vandalism had a great media impact,” recalls the prosecutor in his letter, saying that “due to its obviously degrading and contemptuous nature, it represents an attack on the dignity of the targeted women and the group to which they belong.” They integrate themselves.” In addition to the prison sentence, the public prosecutor’s office is requesting the imposition of a special ban on the teaching profession or the educational industry in the areas of teaching, sport and leisure for a period of six years, which extends beyond the prison sentence imposed.
On the same day the events occurred, the city council promised to restore the works. “I strongly and unequivocally condemn what happened to the mural. Intolerance has no place in the city of Madrid. The City Council’s obligation is to restore the mural to the condition in which it was,” said Mayor José Luis Martínez Almeida.
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