A noose was discovered around the neck of a bronze statue of late rapper Tupac Shakur, which sits in the Peace Garden inside of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts in Stone Mountain, Georgia.
Vandals have also defaced the building and later further damaged the statue with "handbills of garbled rants that include references to 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina as well as vague threats against various record companies and rappers," read a statement from The Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation (TASF).
The attacks, which all took place between the early hours of Saturday, Oct. 20 and 2 a.m. Monday Oct. 22, are currently being investigated as hate crimes by the De Kalb County Sheriff's Office.
"We thank everyone for their prayers and support. Although our hearts are temporarily in pain, our spirits have already forgiven the perpetrators," said Tupac's mother and TASF founder, Afeni Shakur. "Hate comes in all colors and genders, therefore we will use this act of hate and ignorance to bring our community together and to pray for the healing of those who harbor such feelings. With God's guidance, the work of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts and Peace Garden will continue to positively impact and transform our community."
The Foundation is currently raising money to construct a fence around the parameters of the Center to prevent these types of incidents from occurring again.
Meanwhile, the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts will kick off its 2nd Bi-Annual Film Screening with a re-dedication service of the Peace Garden on Saturday, Nov. 10 at 1 p.m. Following the service will be a film screening and panels from film industry experts. Both events are free to the public.
Donations can be sent to TASF, 5616 Memorial Drive, Stone Mountain, GA 30083 or at http://www.tasf.org and http://www.2PACLegacy.com.
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