The Pride crosswalk art project on State Street in Media Borough involved everyone, writes Denali Sagner for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The rainbow crosswalk was designed by artist Victor Surbrook. It became a reality at State and Plum Streets with the help of volunteers, supported by the Media Arts Council, Media Borough, and the Media Business Authority.
Two hundred individual donors paid for it.
Local artist Stephanie Untz took Surbrook’s design and moved it to the pavement.
The mural is an inclusion symbol, letting the LGBTQ+ community know that all are welcome in the borough known as “Everybody’s Hometown.”
The mural shows the traditional Pride Flag with a rainbow swirl sporting a “Wizard of Oz” motif.
As Media unveils its Pride project, elsewhere, similar homages to LGBTQ+ are being removed.
“We’re seeing a lot of regression,” said Surbrook, who is queer. The U.S. Department of Transportation has stated that arterial roads should be kept free of “political messages of any nature” and “artwork.”
Even in Media, comments appeared on the Media Art Council’s Facebook page attacking the project.
“It’s surprising, the lack of empathy that people have,” said Jeff Thomas, artistic director for the Media Arts Council.
Read more about the Pride crosswalk and response to it in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
