San Francisco, CA
Racist graffiti, noose at San Francisco park tied to dog dispute
Noose, racist graffiti at San Francisco park tied to dog dispute
Someone spray-painted racist graffiti and left a noose at a San Francisco playground, days after a dog owner was told her pet wasn’t allowed there.
SAN FRANCISCO – Racist graffiti and a noose found at a San Francisco park happened days after a woman was told she could not have her dog in the playground by the head of a youth organization.
The woman vowed to do everything possible to shut down this group, officials said on Friday during a news conference at the park hours after the vile messages had been painted over.
“That disgusting racial slur that was written all over this building does not define who we are as a city,” said Maria Su, director of the city’s Department of Children, Youth and their Families.
SEE ALSO: Alameda County firefighter accused of racist rant on paid leave
The vandalism at Merced Heights Playground on Shields Street is being investigated as a hate crime and a direct attack on the nonprofit called Youth First.
“This is not tolerated. And it will not be tolerated. We will continue to celebrate Youth First,” Su said.
Renard Monroe, Youth First’s founder and executive director, said that someone had spray-painted “N- First” on the building.
“It was destroyed by hate,” Monroe said. “The N-word. It said, ‘N-word First’ because we’re called Youth First, so they were kind of aiming that word toward our program.”
Officials believe the vandalism is a direct response to an incident at the park last week when a woman with her toddler daughter and their dog were near the playground, in the upper terrace area, where dogs are not allowed.
When Monroe told the woman to take her dog to the lower terrace of the park, where dogs are allowed, she told him, “No (N-word) is going to tell me where to go,” he recounted.
Supervisor Ahsha Safai said, “Then it turned into the N-word. It turned into threats. And the woman said, ‘I am going to make it my job to shut down your organization.’”
Following the threat, state licensing officials visited the park based on an anonymous tip, questioning whether Monroe’s operation was a childcare facility when it is actually an after-school program.
“People show up saying the music’s too loud. And then today he (Monroe) shows up and there’s spray paint and a noose hanging on the door,” Safai said.
Officials said the incident is a grim reminder that there is still division and hatred, even in a city as diverse as San Francisco.
“Everyone that doesn’t believe that racism is still alive – and still alive in San Francisco – it absolutely is. But guess what? We’re not going to be broken by it,” the supervisor said.
While no suspects have been publicly identified, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins assured that once the case reaches her office, “We will do everything to make sure the person or persons responsible for this are held accountable.”
Jenkins said, although the messages were abhorrent, the hate beneath the vandalism can’t be ignored.
“We have to bring attention to it, as much as we don’t want to give what this person did attention, San Francisco has to recognize how much work it still needs to do,” Jenkins said.
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan.
A California sea lion pup found last week on a San Francisco street corner is malnourished but “active and quite feisty,” The Marine Mammal Center said Monday.
The sea lion, believed to be about 10 months old, had apparently wandered into city’s Outer Sunset neighborhood and was discovered early Thursday morning, authorities said.
The pup was spotted near 48th and Irving Streets, one block from Ocean Beach and Sunset Dunes park. A trained responder from the Marine Mammal Center was joined by San Francisco park rangers and police officers to safely corral the pup, now named ‘Irving’, into a carrier crate.
Dubbed ‘Irving’ by his rescuers, Irving weighed in at 40 pounds and is considered malnourished, the Marine Mammal Center said.
“The sea lion is active and quite feisty which is a positive initial sign in terms of general behavior,” the center said in a news release on Monday.
During an exam by veterinarians, a series of blood samples were also taken to determine whether there’s any underlying ailment.
Irving is being tube fed a fish smoothie blend two times per day to boost hydration and weight; offers of whole herring will also begin shortly.
The quick actions by police, recreation and parks staff and Ocean Avenue Animal Hospital gave the young sea lion a second chance at life, said Lauren Campbell, animal husbandry manager at The Marine Mammal Center.
“As a roughly 10-month-old pup in his first year of learning how to forage on his own, this animal has a long road to recovery due to his severe malnutrition,” Campbell said. “We are hopeful that in the coming weeks with continued specialized care that this pup starts to make positive strides toward recovery and release.”
Irving will be held in the Center’s Intensive Quarantine Unit until clearing medical protocols, before likely being transferred this week to a traditional rehabilitation pool pen. A long-term prognosis and potential release timeline are not currently known.
After Sunday’s 3-0 loss to the Washington Nationals, the San Francisco Giants headed back to the West Coast. They’re going back to the Bay Area, too.
The Giants have a date with the Los Angeles Dodgers for a three-game series at Oracle Park starting Tuesday night.
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So, San Francisco probably wanted to get out of Washington, D.C., with a win. That didn’t happen at Nationals Park on Sunday afternoon.
Nationals reliever Andrew Alvarez, the third pitcher used by the team on Sunday, picked up the victory with 4 1/3 innings of work. Giants starter Robbie Ray absorbed the loss, falling to 2-3 this season.
Ray worked six innings, giving up seven hits, three runs (all earned), walking one, and striking out seven Nationals. If the Giants’ offense had found a way to tack on some runs, then Ray’s outing wouldn’t have looked so bad.
The Giants’ bats, though, had eight hits. The big number for Giants manager Tony Vitello to look at in the box score after this one was, well, pretty big. San Francisco left 10 runners on base on Sunday, going 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position. This indicates that San Francisco had plenty of opportunities to score some runs.
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They just didn’t get the job done.
Let’s go to the bottom of the fifth with the Giants and Nationals in a scoreless tie. With nobody out, the Nationals’ Keibert Ruiz connected for his third double this season. Nasim Nuñez scored to put Washington up 1-0.
With one out, Curtis Mead sent a Ray pitch over the left-field wall, a two-run blast that gave the Nationals a 3-0 lead.
San Francisco had a scoring threat in the top of the eighth inning. With runners at first and second base and nobody out, Casey Schmitt grounded into a double play. Matt Chapman, who was on second base, went to third. But the Giants were unable to bring him home.
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Rafael Devers and Drew Gilbert went 2-for-4 at the plate for the Giants, producing half of the Giants’ hits.
The Giants fall to 9-13 this season, sitting in fourth place in the National League West Division. The Nationals’ record goes to 10-12, good enough for third place in the National League East Division.
All eyes now turn toward Oracle on Tuesday night. It’ll be a chance for two longtime rivals to renew their rivalry.
Baseball fans know that the Giants-Dodgers matchups usually are must-see TV.
That’s probably going to be the case once again as Giants fans watch their team battle the Dodgers. Those lucky to have tickets to the three-game series at Oracle Park will show up in Giants colors, hoping to see Los Angeles head back to Southern California with either a series loss or a Giants’ sweep.
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Buckle up, Giants fans. It’s about to get rowdy at Oracle Park.
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