Verilu Infante 
BROWNSVILLE – Recently, a new mural honoring late retired NBA player Kobe Bryant gained attention on social media. But, it’s location is near Palm Boulevard, the same area Brownsville City Mayor Trey Mendez states there has been mural tagging.
“You see it like pretty much every rundown park. Yeah, it’s crazy.”
Mendez has made it aware through social media that within the month of January, he has seen an increase in the tagging of murals around the city.
Along with the post was a photo of a mural entitled “Bloom Where You are Planted” which has been tagged in spray paint.
Some residents expressed their disappointment with the vandalism in the comments. Mayor Mendez said via Facebook that he discussed the issue with the Brownsville Police Department, which is going to be more vigilant.
We got in contact with the mural artists for Bryant’s mural but were unable to obtain an interview with them. Whether they’re taking any actions to prevent their mural from being vandalized is unknown.
We asked a Brownsville resident his thoughts on the situation.
“What more can you really do cause we see it glorified in movies so there really isn’t much we can do,” said the Brownsville resident. “It’s not like we’re gonna get people to stand by every single mural. It’s more of just like a quote on quote honor-based thing. He did as much as he could do.”
If you’d like to report a crime in Brownsville, you can call the Brownsville Crime Stoppers at 546- 8477 or contact the Brownsville Police Department at 548-7000.
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