Cambridge police asking for help after vandals hit mural of late Rep. John Lewis

CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - Cambridge police are searching for a vandal after a mural painted in memory of Congressman John Lewis was defaced with spray paint.

A streak of black paint obscured the civil rights icon’s face and left the team at Urban Hearth restaurant “heartbroken, angry,” and ready to make some noise.

In a tweet posted to the restaurant’s Twitter page Tuesday, owner Erin Miller said she and artist  Rocky Cotard already have plans to restore the piece.

“This was an ugly act of premeditated hate, and there is no excusing it,” Miller wrote in a statement affixed to the mural.

Cotard painted the mural back in October and said that whatever the vandal’s intent, they were not able to cover up the message of the piece.

“The intention was to cover up something or to ruin it. But in some ways communities have formed behind it. People have paid a lot more attention to it,” he said.

They said they hope the vandalism will facilitate a more positive conversation within the community.

“The more of us who share the burden of this pain in solidarity, the less power it has,” Miller wrote.

Investigators said it is unclear if the mural was targeted. They said other areas were also vandalized.

Anyone with information is being urged to contact police at 617-349-3300.

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