Huge ‘Defund the Wall’ street mural gets approval in a Texas border town
The city council of a Texas border town voted unanimously Monday the approval of a large “Defund the Wall” street mural.
Laredo, located on the Mexico border about 150 miles south of San Antonio, will work with the No Border Wall Coalition on the project, the organization said in a release.
“This vote was about sending a message to Washington D.C. — that we have real needs here on the border, and the wall isn’t one of them,” Councilman Roberto Balli said, according to the No Border Wall coalition.
Balli argued Monday the mural is not about taking a political stance because the border wall issue will not be on a November ballot, the Laredo Morning Times reported.
After the anonymous vote, some people voiced their displeasure with the city council.
“We should all vote to defund the City Council and use that tax money for something useful in the city,” Jaime Arredondo said on the Laredo Morning Times Facebook page.
”I don’t want our streets painted or should I say trashed,” Sylvia Chavarria Camano added. “This is ridiculous! This kind of decision should be left up to the citizens of Laredo. Put it on the November ballot!”
The mural will be painted in front of Laredo’s U.S. District Court building. It will be painted as a way to raise awareness so “the rest of the country will pay attention to what’s going on here, and listen to what we, the residents of Laredo, want for our future,” coalition member Karen Gaytan stated.
Tricia Cortez, an organizer for the coalition, said Laredo will be the first border city to have a street mural regarding the border wall issue, according to Border Report.
A group of “activists, landowners, city officials and business leaders” have banded together to try to stop the federal government from building the border wall in Laredo, NPR reported in May.
Construction is intended to start in January on a 14-mile stretch of the wall in and around Laredo, according to the Associated Press. That portion of the wall will cost $275 million, the AP reported.
“Laredo needs jobs,” Sister Rosemary Welsh, a member of the coalition, said. “Laredo needs better infrastructure. Laredo needs adequate and safe housing. Laredo needs funding to restore the river. Laredo needs investment in our healthcare system, and our colleges and students. Laredo does not need a border wall.”