Rainbow boardwalk targeted for third time in Tillsonburg

A rainbow boardwalk at the Station Arts Center in Tillsonburg has once again been targeted by vandals.

“The Station Arts Center is disappointed to announce that once again, we are the target of hateful, unnecessary vandalism on our Rainbow Boardwalk,” said a post on the Station Arts Center and Oxford County Pride Facebook pages. “This time, two, ignorant, disrespectful individuals decided to take it upon themselves to destroy a non-profit organizations property.”

This is the third time the boardwalk has been vandalized since late May.

On June 9 a red-and-white dirt bike was used to damage the wood and paint on the boardwalk, police said. An incident on the night of May 27 also involved a rider on a red-and-white dirt bike.

The latest incident was caused by two individuals on dirt bikes at just after 11 pm on Thursday, Oct. 10, based on the time stamp of a photo posted to social media.

“We truly feel sorry for you that you’re so distracted over kindness and acceptance that you need to act out in destruction and rage. We hope you eventually come to terms with yourselves and learn to love and not hate.”

The Station Arts Centre’s rainbow boardwalk was put in place last year.

“We are trying to promote the inclusiveness of the station, so (the vandalism) does not make me happy,” Gale Connor, a center board member and volunteer, said following the June incident. “Especially when you have someone who blatantly rides a dirt bike to specifically come and wreck the walkway and then comes back again after it’s been posted out (by) the police.”

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