Rainbow crosswalks celebrating LGBTQ+ pride in Central Texas may soon be gone, but not without a fight in the state’s capital city. Last week, Governor Greg Abbott ordered cities and counties to remove “any and all political ideologies” from streets or risk losing state and federal money for road projects.
Andrew Ortman, who attended the event, said about 30 to 40 people showed up, but right when the group was staging for photos a person threw an entire can of red paint, vandalizing the crosswalk. Shortly after though, an Austin Fire Department (AFD) truck responded within minutes to save the day.
“At what felt like perfect timing, an AFD truck came down 4th street within a few minutes of it happening. Someone in the group asked one of the firemen if they happened to have any water on board to help wash the paint off,” Ortman wrote on Reddit. “They immediately jumped out of the truck and got to work.”
AFD used fire extinguishers to scrub off some of the splattered paint across the crosswalk until another fire truck showed up with water on board to wash away the rest of the red paint. Ortman explained that this kind gesture from the department allowed the organizers to continue with their planned photo shoot and commemorate the crosswalk.
“They were able to get all the red paint out and with a smile on their face, also scrubbed down the entire crosswalk to pretty it up for the photowalk,” Ortman said. “This moment meant the world to everyone there. We were all pretty bummed out that someone would do such a thing, but in the end I felt a real sense of community in this city. The act of vandalism ended in a story that will be a core memory for me.”
Austin Drag Queen and activist Brigitte Bandit also attended the event, calling it a “wonderful display of solidarity and community today at 4th and Colorado to DEFEND OUR CROSSWALKS!” on social media. She posted several photos from the event including one with AFD’s clean-up crew in front of the fire truck with attendees holding up a Queer pride flag and sign.
Instagram users in Bandit’s comment section like @luketbh wrote, “Love seeing the community come together and RESIST!” and @staygoldenboyz added, “The community really came together tonight and it made me feel so proud and grateful to be a part of it!! We really know how to come together and celebrate one another.” Other Redditors praised AFD under Ortman’s post including @aphrobtz who said, “AFAB – all firefighters are bada**” and RuprectGern continuing, “Thank you AFD for being compassionate humans in the face of so much… ‘no.'”
In protest of the crosswalk’s removal, the group also created a petition to protect Austin’s beloved “Black Artists Matter” and multiple LGBTQ+ pride sidewalks. It’s since garnered over 2,000 signatures as of Tuesday, October 14.