Commuters traveling west on the Beltway this week can catch a glimpse of a new graffiti message with a political slant: “bridges not walls,” it reads, in sprawling block letters.
The graffiti appeared on a CSX train bridge in Silver Spring sometime in the past week. Montgomery County police had not received any reports of the vandalism and had not heard of the graffiti until Thursday, police spokesman Officer Rick Goodale said.
The graffiti message echoes the statements of many political activists who opposed President Trump’s proposed Mexican border wall and crackdown on immigration from several Muslim-majority countries. “Bridges not walls” has become a mantra for protestors and hews closely to statements made by the U.N. in January and Pope Francis Wednesday.
The bridge, near the Washington D.C. Temple for the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints, has seen its share of graffiti before, including “Wizard of Oz” references and dedications to local punk heroes Fugazi.
Because the bridge is owned by CSX, it falls under the company’s jurisdiction and police will not investigate the incident, Goodale said.
