Historic Black church vandalized with spray-painted racial epithet ahead of MLK Day

Courtesy: Seminole County Sheriff's Office

A historic Black church and one-room schoolhouse in Seminole County that was in the process of being renovated was vandalized by someone who spray-painted a racial epithet on the side of the building, according to a Seminole County Sheriff’s report.

“Whoever did this committed a ‘hate crime’ by placing the symbols and speech on a church,” the Historic Oviedo Colored Schools Museum wrote on Facebook.

The damage at the nearly century-old church was done over the weekend just before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Sheriff’s report said.

“We have launched a Felony Criminal Mischief investigation and are actively working leads. It is disheartening to see racist graffiti on this historic structure,” Sheriff spokesman Bob Kealing said, noting the timing of the vandalism before Monday’s holiday. “Deputies have proactively painted over the graffiti for the church and community.”

The estimated cost in damages ranges from $300 up to $15,000, depending on whether the spray paint can be repainted or if the entire siding must be replaced, the Sheriff’s report said. 

Local neighbors did not report seeing anything suspicious, the Sheriff’s report added.

The museum was in the process of renovating the St. James A.M.E. Church/Gabriella Colored School and had acquired $228,500 in state funding in 2022, the Orlando Sentinel previously reported.

In 2023, local officials went to the church for a groundbreaking ceremony on the renovation project. The church had been built in the 1930s.

“This was one of many colored schools in Seminole during segregation,” Kelley Muller-Smith, the Historic Oviedo Colored Schools Museum’s Vice President, told the Sentinel last year. “There were so many Black churches. And even after slavery, they kept us from being educated for so long. Thank God for these churches that were open during the week to educate our children. We didn’t have anywhere else to go and learn.”

The museum did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

The building, located at 2170 James Dr. in Seminole County, is owned by the African Methodist Episcopal Diocese which has a 25-year lease on the church, the Sheriff’s report said.

“We contacted the African Methodist Episcopal Diocese’s attorney who checked with Bishop Zanders. He requested that the FBI be notified. This has been accomplished,” the museum wrote on social media.

Anyone has information about this incident should call the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office at (407-665-6650) or Crimeline at (800)423-TIPS.