Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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Alex Cabrero reporting Someone made a mess out of fences and houses and cars in a Federal Heights neighborhood near Butler Avenue. That mess was graffiti, filled with racial slurs and hate words.
Noel de Nevers, Lives in Neighborhood: "I think that's all very sad."
The F word. The N word. They're about as ugly, as disgusting, as downright vulgar as anyone can possibly get, and they're all in Noel de Nevers' neighborhood.
Noel de Nevers, Lives in Neighborhood: "Oh, it's awful. It's ugly to look at, and it's ugly that there are people who feel that way about their fellow people."
Sometime in the past couple of days, someone spray-painted these words throughout this Federal Heights neighborhood in Salt Lake City. On fences, on cars and on garages; anywhere where others could see.
Noel de Nevers, Lives in Neighborhood: "If they find out who did it, I hope they are stuck with the responsibility of cleaning up the mess they made."
de Nevers himself says it reminds him of the civil rights movement, when whites and blacks seemed to always be fighting and arguing about equality. That was some 40 years ago.
Noel de Nevers, Lives in Neighborhood: "I can remember when racism was the official policy of our country."
Something this man thought should stay in the history books. But things like this keep reminding him there's still a long way to go.
Noel de Nevers, Lives in Neighborhood: "Yeah, I had hoped we had gotten past that, but racism is alive and well. There's a lot less of it than there used to be."
But still just enough to send emotions and feelings flying.
Some of the markings read BYU. Some thought this was just be a bad prank before the big Utah-BYU football game. But de Nevers says, even though he's a Utes fan, no way.
Noel de Nevers, Lives in Neighborhood: "I don't think this was BYU students. I suspect that whoever did it, put those there to throw people off... Trying to find out who really did it."
Police have not made any arrests yet. Cases like these are hard to investigate.
de Nevers also said to keep things in perspective. It's paint, not a murder, a rape, or child abuse, just some punks with a spray can doing their thing.
