A mural in Chinatown that was painted only five weeks ago has been covered with graffiti.
Lorraine Lowe, executive director for the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, sent out a tweet Monday showing the damage.
It is just the latest example of vandalism in Vancouver’s Chinatown neighbourhood.
Bradley Spence, who owns a nearby store, said it’s extremely frustrating, but he is not surprised.
“They just painted that. It’s a beautiful mural and to see it defaced so quickly, like weeks after they just painted it, it’s a shame,” he told Global News Monday.
Spence said he does not know what to do about the recurring vandalism. He said he sees more and more graffiti every day in the neighbourhood.
“It’s the business owners that have to pay,” he said, “and we’re just trying to get by. It’s frustrating when these people don’t realize how they’re hurting businesses when they’re doing it.”
This comes after Vancouver police said they are investigating a possible hate crime after a senior citizen was bear-sprayed in Chinatown on Friday.
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The 87-year-old victim, a neighbourhood resident, was standing at a bus stop near Pender and Columbia streets around 11:40 a.m. when a stranger came up to him and made racist comments. The attacker bear-sprayed him in the face and fled, police said.
Police are also investigating whether the attack may be related to offensive graffiti that appeared outside the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden on May 20.
The word “Shhh,” written on the red gates in white paint, was interpreted by many as backlash directed at Chinatown residents who have recently spoken up about crime and safety, police said.
According to the VPD, graffiti reports and anti-Asian hate crime incidents in Chinatown increased by 300 per cent and 425 per cent, respectively, in 2020 and 2021.
Spence said officers should be driving around, especially at night, to catch the vandals.
He said he’s installing rolling shutters on his store next week because they can’t afford to keep repairing broken windows.
And he has a message for those who are causing the damage: “You’re hurting small business and it doesn’t make any sense why you’re doing that.”