Vandals spray painted Swastikas on the gay rights monument in The Hague
The Homomonument in The Hague, a prominent memorial to the LGBTQI+ community located at Koekamp, was vandalized with swastikas, Omroep West reported on Tuesday. This is not the first time that the memorial has been defaced. In July, the monument was covered with drawings and anti-gay slogans.
Photos reveal swastikas painted on it and a heart with the text "Antifa" beside it. The perpetrator of the graffiti remains unknown. According to the local broadcaster, the graffiti was likely applied during the night from Monday to Tuesday. The municipality cleaned the monument on Tuesday morning.
The board of the International Homomonument Foundation in The Hague, which is responsible for the memorial, told ANP they were shocked by the "apparent attack on our community," which indicates that "tolerance is not self-evident for everyone." The foundation has been in contact with the police and municipality and intends to file a report.
The city’s alderman Robert Barker said on X that this “shows once again that we must stand for inclusivity in The Hague.”
Richard de Mos, leader of the party Hart voor Den Haag, responded in a post on X, stating that his party wants “higher penalties for defacing monuments and statues.”
In July, the monument was also targeted with anti-gay slogans such as “fuck gays” and “weg met pride,” which translates to “down with pride.” Benches colored like the rainbow flag were also defaced.
