Local News

Work continues to repaint Black Lives Matter mural at Fayetteville Market House

Work began Wednesday and resumed Thursday on a replacement Black Lives Matter mural around Fayetteville's Market House.
Posted 2021-02-03T12:38:14+00:00 - Updated 2021-02-04T16:01:50+00:00
'This was not the time:' Citizens upset to see Black Lives Matter mural removed so soon after mob in the Capitol

Work began Wednesday and resumed Thursday on a replacement Black Lives Matter mural around Fayetteville's Market House.

According to the City of Fayetteville, the estimated cost of the mural replacement is $5,500, which pays for supplies and artist fees.

The mural, which was painted around the building last summer after the killing of George Floyd, was removed in early January just days after the riot at the U.S. Capitol. Multiple downtown residents and businesses spoke to WRAL News, saying it was wrong for the city to remove the slogans, especially given the current political climate.

Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin admitted the city made a mistake removing those words just before Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday and the start of Black History Month in February.

On Wednesday, the original artists, Collyn Strother and Malcolm Chester, will lead the repainting along with volunteers from Fayetteville State University. The mural will again be yellow with block letters and will surround the Market House, which is nearly 200 years old and played a role in the buying and selling of enslaved men and women in the 1800s.

The mural will read "Black Lives Matter" and "End Racism Now."

“This mural means a lot to the community, it opens up conversations that need to be heard. In a sense, it's a painting but to many of us it's that bold statement that we're here to make change," Strother said. “This mural gives life to silent and oppressed voices of the past and present. Struggles can lead to successes. Let this art inspire you to stand up for your beliefs,” Chester said.

Credits