Foot Locker company bricked over Harlem street art "The Spirit of Harlem."

[CTyankee]

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/17/nyregion/spirit-of-harlem-mural.html

What an outrage. The company, Footaction, bricked over a beloved Harlem mural but now must take down the brick. Now the company is embarrassed to say the least and say the brick wall will be taken down, so the mural is restored to the community which is celebrates.

I was so angry when I read this story in today's NYT. The mural is beautiful and it serves the people of the community's soul, as great art always has.

What were they thinking???

[madaboutharry]

1. What an idiotic thing to do.

Most likely this came from someone in a corporate office far away who has never been to Harlem and was told "there is a mural on the side of the building" and imagined graffiti without investigating it any further. How sad.

I hope the artist can restore it.

[lunasun]

2. Nice calling card to the community where they are opening a store

[CTyankee]

3. I know. Dumb as rocks, right?

I bet the company was rubbing their hands together thinking of all the profits they would make with their product "in the community." Didn't they do a site visit? The mural was there to greet them. Did they wonder about it? Did they not even inquire as to its title, its provenance?

Corporate idiocy at it very best...

[dalton99a]

4. Truly stupid.

[panader0]

5. A beautiful mural.

[CTyankee]

7. thank you for posting the pic. Nowadays I can't seem to post a single art pic that isn't

part of a story so I do links. At least I can remember how to post a link....

[maveric]

6. Little by little...

[KY_EnviroGuy]

8. K & R. Corporate cancer. n/t

[demmiblue]

9. What the hell were they thinking is right?!

I hope that they are able to restore this wonderful piece of art to it's original state.

[CTyankee]

10. thank you for posting details of this wonderful work.

The color is glorious. That company is a total loser...

[hunter]

11. What were they thinking?

Probably something utterly vile and racist like "All those black people are going to scare away our affluent white customers. We're not a gangster shoe shop."

[CTyankee]

13. What were they doing in Harlem?

AND, did they even LOOK at the mural? Where are the gangsters?

Oh, jeez...

[oberliner]

14. On Whole Foods, Gentrification and the Erasure of Black Harlem

Bye-bye, black Harlem, glad I knew ye. Hello, Whole Foods, I do enjoy your products, but if you can gentrify greens, what chance do we really have?

https://www.theroot.com/on-whole-foods-gentrification-and-the-erasure-of-black-1797444513

[hunter]

15. What were they doing? They were gentrifying.

That wonderful mural, all those brilliant black people, made them uncomfortable.

[raven mad]

12. I love murals done by freelancers and street artists.

This one was one of the best ever. Idiots are idiots everywhere, I guess.

Here's a local to help cool the mad!