Did Black Lives Matter Protesters Deface a Vietnam War Memorial?

A viral Facebook post claims that Black Lives Matter protesters vandalized a Vietnam War memorial. The post was originally published July 7 and continues to be widely shared now more than two weeks later.

The photo depicts the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Los Angeles, California. The wall is a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., and has been vandalized in the past. However, the memorial has not been vandalized during the recent protests that occurred. A reverse image search shows that the picture is of defacement that occurred in 2016, and rather than BLM protesters, Angel Castro, a graffiti tagger known by the moniker “Liter,” was arrested for the crime. Three other taggers are thought to have been involved: “Pheb,” “Noner,” and “Snake.” Tagging is the act of leaving a graffiti signature, a way for taggers to show off to each other. Given the type of graffiti on the memorial, there’s nothing to indicate that the foursome were involved with the Black Lives Matter movement.