A Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers post containing images of the graffiti says incidents have occurred twice in recent weeks.
The crosswalk has been defaced twice within the last two weeks with homophobic slurs and a misspelled reference to a Bible verse, according to a Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers’ Facebook post. Warman RCMP is investigating.
The City of Warman confirmed it is the community’s first Pride crosswalk. Great Plains College Warman campus approached city council with a request to paint the crosswalk, and the college’s staff painted the crosswalk on June 22. It is located at the intersection of Central Street and Eighth Avenue.Within two hours of the city learning about it, the messages were painted over, he said. The city has also set up a camera at the site.
“I’m sorry that there’s people out there that are just not tolerant and it’s just not representative of the city of Warman,” Philipchuk said. “We are a welcoming community to all and I know that from the many people I work with. That is a pride of us, of Warman and we’re not going to let a few people have any representation of us in that way.”