A Phoenix activist will hold a press conference on Monday morning to address the city denying a request for a Black Lives Matter street mural.

The conference will begin at 10 a.m. on the steps of City Hall in downtown Phoenix, said Gizette Knight, one of the organizers. She said she will be addressing inaccuracies in the city manager’s letter denying the request and taking questions from the media.

The proposed mural would have said “Black Lives Matter” on Third Street between Jefferson and Jackson streets, with portraits of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., César Chávez and former U.S. Rep. John Lewis. 

Knight, who designed the proposed mural and submitted it to the city, collected more than 2,500 signatures in support of the artwork on Change.org.

The city denied the request Sept.10 and also denied a request for a pro-police street mural that would have said “No one is above the law” in front of the Phoenix Police Department.

She said the City Council needs to bring it to a vote as they did when rainbow crosswalks were proposed and passed on Seventh and Glenrosa avenues and Central Avenue on Portland street — a tribute to the LGBTQ+ community in Phoenix.

Knight said as an activist in Phoenix for years, she has always promoted inclusivity in communities, and that is what this mural represents. 

Get in touch with Chloe Jones at [email protected] and find her on Twitter at @chloeleejones.

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