'Black Lives Matter' Banner at Arlington Church Slashed

ARLINGTON, MA—The 'Black Lives Matter' movement has taken the country by storm, with strong support both for and against being voiced on the world stage. 

Those strong feelings reached a pinnacle in Arlington this past weekend, as a banner in support of the movement in front of the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church was slashed with a sharp device, slicing through the word "black." This has been the fifth incident since the church decided to put up the banner in January of 2015, and the sign has stood intermittently at the church's 630 Massachusetts Ave. address since.

"We are even more concerned about this when it is a slash," church clerk Lori Kenschaft told Patch."Something so explicitly violent as slashing through the word 'black' in the context of black lives. That is very disturbing to us."

The "Black Lives Matter" banner before it was vandalized (Courtesy Photo: Lori Kenschaft)

Kenschaft told Patch that the church decided to post the banner on its property after a 2014 vigil was held, in which over 500 people attended on six days notice. She also stated that the church has no intention of taking the sign down.

"It makes us even more feel like that this witness of saying 'black lives matter' is important," said Kenschaft."...Part of the reason its been up so much is because of the negative responses."

According to police, the current incident of vandalism occurred sometime during Friday night or the early hours of Saturday morning. Church leaders alerted the congregation of the vandalism during the April 3 service.

The church has also received negative communications due to the posting of the banner, including a "really ugly racist sticker." Feedback has also been positive, including someone leaving a rose and a note reading "this is in honor of my former lover who was killed 35 years ago," according to Kenschaft.

First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church is currently is undergoing a "restorative justice" process in relation to an event of vandalism that occurred on Thanksgiving of 2015.