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153rd Street in Jamaica to Be Painted with Words “Black Lives Matter”

Mayor Bill de Blasio joined community activists who painted a Black Lives Matter mural on Fulton Street in Brooklyn Sunday — in a separate effort from the city-led initiative. (Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

June 19, 2020 By Allie Griffin

A street in Jamaica will be painted with the words “Black Lives Matter,” Mayor Bill de Blasio announced today.

De Blasio said 153rd Street between Jamaica Avenue and Archer Avenue will be painted with the message — a rallying cry in protests against police brutality and the killing of George Floyd and many other Black Americans.

Each of the five boroughs will have a street marked with “Black Lives Matter” in large text over the next three weeks.

De Blasio revealed the streets to be painted today on Juneteeth, the anniversary of the end of slavery in the U.S., after making the announcement last week.

“The City of New York is saying loudly, clearly, consistently ‘Black Lives Matter,'” de Blasio said at his daily press briefing this morning.

The Department of Transportation began stenciling the letters on Richmond Terrace in Staten Island today.

A street in Bedford-Stuyvesant was painted with the message Sunday in a separate effort led by community activists.

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