A historic mission on the South Coast has been vandalized.
Someone damaged a statue of Saint Junipero Serra at the Santa Barbara Mission. Red paint was dumped on the statue.
The statute has been covered with a tarp. Santa Barbara Police are investigating the vandalism.
Father Serra was one of the founders of California’s mission chain in the 1700’s. He was elevated to sainthood in 2015. No one is talking about a possible motive for the incident.
But, the canonization of Father Serra by the Pope was controversial. Some people contended Serra didn’t do enough to help Native Americans who were often oppressed by Spanish troops, and settlers.
