LYNN — The Lynn City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve the implementation of a youth-proposed Black Lives Matter mural in front of Lynn District Court to City Hall Square.
The installation of the mural, which was proposed by Lynn English seniors Carlos Prudencio and Damianny Garrido, is set to take place during a weekend in June.
The council also voted to check back in with One Lynn-One Love, the youth group founded by Prudencio and Garrido to push for the mural, during their November 9 meeting to discuss what progress has been made and what will be done in the future in terms of maintenance for the installation.
Some stipulations that were agreed on by the council, Prudencio and Garrido, include finalizing the timeline, naming the city on the insurance policy, and working out logistics with the Department of Public Works (DPW) and the Lynn Police Department, which would include a required sidewalk bond.
Under this plan, Prudencio said there will be a lead artist who will design and coordinate the project. Under the lead artist, local artists will be in charge of each word. Since there will be two murals, six artists will be needed for the project.
The plan includes a mural in front of the courthouse on Essex Street that will continue to Johnson Street, with a reverse mural beginning in front of City Hall and continuing to the front of Lynn District Court.
“The mural being on Essex Street to City Hall Square would be in the middle of three institutions that have historically affected the lives of Black people,” Garrido said before the vote. “This mural will unify us during all of the tragedies that we have gone through, not only in the last year, but in our whole lives.”
In terms of funding the project, Prudencio said One Lynn-One Love has brainstormed multiple options, including posting a GoFundMe page, asking for support from Eastern and Salem Five banks, crowdfunding, and tapping into the Lynn Chamber of Commerce.
Prudencio said that more than 174 communities nationwide have already created a BLM mural, including Somerville and Worcester. He said the mural in Lynn would look similar to one implemented in Worcester, which he described as being vibrant, colorful, and inclusive — something he said Lynn youth wants to see.
Ward 6 Councilor Fred Hogan — who has openly supported the mural project for months — credited Prudencio and Garrido for their hard work, saying their dedication and commitment is what the city of Lynn is all about.
“These kids have been fighting for this for over a year now. They never stopped, they never gave up, and they’ve taken on countless meetings with the mayor, with myself, with Council President Darren Cyr and they just kept fighting,” Hogan said.
Councilor Brian LaPierre also expressed his continued support for the project, noting that it was very helpful and beneficial to see the visual presentation from the two students at Tuesday night’s Public Property and Parks Committee meeting, which was held in advance of the full council meeting. He also highlighted the importance of the city and One Lynn-One Love being on the same page, saying they all need to make sure the BLM mural is a collaborative effort.
Ward 2 Councilor Rick Starbard and Cyr, a mayoral candidate, have expressed their opposition for the location of this project in the past, but both said after seeing the resilience and dedication of Prudencio and Garrido, they changed their minds and voted in favor.
“I’m hoping that this will help bring folks together, rather than push us apart,” Starbard said.
Cyr praised the two students for not giving up on the project while the entire council gave them a standing ovation.
“Damianny and Carlos are true champions. For as long as I’ve known these two young people, they’ve always showed up,” Cyr said. “These two are relentless in every sense of the word.”
Tuesday’s unanimous vote came a day after U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton urged the City Council to approve the street mural, saying: “The decision to approve the Essex Street mural should be an easy one.”
Despite the lengthy process that had precluded the students from presenting their proposal to the City Council for the past year — including an initial legal opinion from the city solicitor’s office that advised against painting the mural on city streets — the project also had the support of Mayor Thomas M. McGee.
