Miami Murals of Jackie Robinson, Minnie Miñoso Defaced With Racist Imagery

Police are investigating the vandalism as a hate crime.

A worker examines a defaced mural of Jackie Robinson in Miami. / Carl Juste/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

Two murals in Miami honoring baseball pioneers were defaced with racist imagery this week in what is being investigated as a hate crime, police said Friday.

The murals depicted Hall of Famers Jackie Robinson and Minnie Minoso. Robinson was the first Black player to play in the white major leagues in the 20th century, while Minoso was the first Black player of Latino descent (and the Chicago White Sox's first Black player).

According to police via Bea L. Hines of the Miami Herald and Mark Puleo of The Athletic, the imagery included the n-word and a Nazi swastika.

The murals are located in the Overtown neighborhood, a traditional center of Black cultural life in Miami. Nearby Dorsey Park was once a hub for Negro League baseball, and several other Black baseball icons—including Hall of Fame catcher Josh Gibson and pitcher Satchel Paige—are depicted.

"This was an act of hate, but it will not define us," artist Kyle Holbrook told the Herald. "This mural was born from a community’s pride, history, and power. We will restore it—stronger, bolder, and with even more purpose. Black history is American history. And no spray paint can erase that truth."

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