A white woman of Portland Oregon, later identified as 43-year-old Jeanette K. Grode, was caught on video and seen in photos defacing a monument honoring York, an enslaved Black man who helped William Clark and Meriwether Lewis on their voyage through the western part of the United States in the early 1800s, famously known as the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
The monument features a nameplate that offers viewers and tourists information about York’s life, as well as a bust commemorating him. Armed with purple spray paint and an unjustifiable hatred, Grode decided to vandalize the monument’s base, drawing various symbols while being recorded by shocked Portland witnesses.
In a video obtained by Portland’s KGW, Grode can be heard giving out her name and date of birth before yelling at the recording witness, “Come f***ing arrest me!”
The screaming Karen continued to defend her bigotry, saying that she was “prejudice against Black and Hispanic people,” and “replacing a white man with a black man” would be the opposite of unity, referring to the February 2021 replacement of the city’s Harvey Scott statue. Following social media and justice calls to replace the anti-women’s suffrage, often the xenophobic president of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, the 88-year-old statue of Scott was toppled over and later replaced with York’s.
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According to Smithsonian Magazine, York was born a slave to Clark’s father, an established farmer named John Clark. The 6-foot man was to serve as the explorer’s “body servant’ as they made their trek through the often dangerous areas westward, where he often hunted buffalo, geese and other game to help sustain the group.
Another passerby also took photos of Grode standing near the defaced bust of York.
“Had an interesting encounter during a bike ride this morning. A person was defacing the Bust of York statue on the top of Mt. Tabor,” the user tweeted.
Had an interesting encounter during a bike ride this morning. A person was defacing the Bust of York statue on the top of Mt Tabor. pic.twitter.com/LbLYut9RGr
— GodzEli (@santoku) June 8, 2021
Portland officers later identified Grode as the tagger but decided not to arrest her due to “booking restrictions” at the local jail, Oregon’s KPTV reported. She was issued a simple vandalism citation instead of taking her into custody on second-degree criminal mischief, unlawful applying of graffiti and other charges.
No word yet on if Grode will have to cough up cash for paint removal and remodeling costs.
