Unknown artist fixes Gainesville student murders memorial, no group in city responsible for upkeep
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) -For a few weeks the memorial for the victims of the Gainesville student murders went untouched until it was fixed.
The piece has been a staple on the 34th street graffiti wall for over 20 years, it is one that rarely gets tagged and upkeep is always quick to come. For years several groups took care of it, from law enforcement to University of Florida students, but as of February 2022 no one group in the city is solely responsible for upkeep.
Gina Hawkins is the Executive Director for Keep Alachua County Beautiful, she says that if someone wants to help paint or take care of the wall they will always help them out.
“If they want to help out they can register at our website. They can help with scraping or painting over, prepping the wall, doing things that will help that memorial stay in place,” said Hawkins.
RELATED STORY: ‘Don’t let it fade away’: GPD Chief asking public to fix Gainesville student murders memorial
Blake Harrison has repainted the wall over a dozen time. This last time he was set to head that way when he saw it was already being worked on.
“I haven’t repainted the whole thing per-say, but I’ll repaint parts of it if they fall off or get tagged on, which is very rare for that panel to be tagged on, or worked on top off, but if something like that happens I’ll just touch it up while I’m there. Easily a dozen times over the last few years if not more, but it’s more of a touch up and this last one where this big chunk got painted over. I was driving over there to go work on it and somebody had already painted it black and I knew they were going to continue so I just left it alone and whomever did that finished it,” said Harrison.
He was living in the area when the murders occurred in 1990. He believes members of the Gainesville art community know to paint it when they have the chance.
“The art community, not unlike myself, when at the wall, if you have the paint you just touch it up. I believe that’s their mentality as well,” said Harrison.
While no one is responsible, it seems that know everyone in the city has shared authority over keeping the mural alive.
“It was a dark time for Gainesville, but this keeps the light alive for the student victims,” said Harrison.
Copyright 2022 WCJB. All rights reserved. Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.