Graffiti criticizing firework use during Rute’s May Festivities defaced the parish of San Francisco, prompting condemnation from local religious leaders and discussions of joint action with the City Council.
During the final hours of Rute’s May Festivities honoring the Virgen de la Cabeza, vandals defaced the side façade of the parish church of San Francisco with graffiti attacking the use of pyrotechnics, accompanied by physical damage to the building. The act, discovered early Tuesday morning, drew swift condemnation from parishioners and brotherhood leaders, including Andrés and Teresa Cobos, who emphasized the unjustifiable nature of the vandalism and its contrast with the coordinated, reduced pyrotechnics this year.