Vandals at work – homophobic graffiti on rainbow protection route

SPÖ city councilor Stefan Ganzert had the protection route, which already exists in this form in dozens of cities and municipalities, installed under his responsibility as the city’s mobility officer, after the FPÖ voted against such an initiative several months ago. Now, just five days after it was installed, the protective pad has been smeared with homophobic insults. Unknown people sprayed “Scheiss Schwuchteln, no gays” over the protective pad.

For SPÖ spokeswoman Eva-Maria Holzleitner and LGBTIQ spokesperson Mario Lindner, it is clear that this vandalism should not be ignored: “Once again in Wels we saw a sad sign of growing LGBTIQ hostility across Austria. We have been warning for months that attacks, abuse and vandalism against the LGBTIQ community is on the rise. If a protection route that stands for respect and acceptance is violated a few days after installation, politicians should not just look the other way.”

‘Vandalism does not belong in Wels’
Security guard and FP Deputy Mayor Gerhard Kroiß: “Watch out for possible followers: such mindless smear campaigns cannot be tolerated! In addition to a criminal conviction, the cleaning costs must also be paid. In the future, the security guard will pay more attention to this area during their patrols. Vandalism has no place in Wels!”

“You can’t get away with this!”
Alderman Stefan Ganzert emphasizes: “After the municipal employees discovered the vandalism this morning, the protection route was repaired and cleaned as quickly as possible! We will do everything we can to ensure that this incident is fully clarified. But everyone behind it must be clear: the vast majority majority of our city stands for openness and equal rights – they can’t get away with such disgusting actions!”