The artist behind the mural that showcases McDonough County's place in the history of the Underground Railroad is asking the question: 'Who in h*** do you think you are?'
Sometime in the past few days, a person (or persons) etched a deep scratch in the face of the late, local abolitionist John Blazer on the mural in the Thomas C. Carper Amtrak Station in Macomb. The mural, created by Western Illinois University Art Professor Emeritus Michael Mahoney, was unveiled Nov. 6.
'Assisted by Ruby Warner and Julie Seregny Mahoney, I spent months planning, painting and installing the mural as a monument to the courage of the men and women, those seeking freedom and the abolitionists who assisted them, risking grave consequences for their heroic actions. And then someone decided to disfigure the image of John Blazer,' Mahoney shared on social media. 'There is a principal which cannot fail to keep a person in everlasting ignorance - that principle is contempt prior to investigation. I am paraphrasing a quote attributed to William Paley.'
Mahoney, who was commissioned for the piece, worked on the mural for approximately six months leading up to its unveiling: from research to design to sketching to painting. An Illinois leg of the Underground Railroad ran directly through McDonough County, with the two most prominent 'station masters' and 'conductors' being members of the Allison and Blazer families and Mahoney.
Anyone with information on the defacement of the mural, should contact the Macomb Police Department at (309) 833-4505.
“How can this person possibly believe that by defacing the mural they've done something beneficial for understanding the history of the Underground Railroad here in McDonough County?,' Mahoney pondered. 'While the damage can be repaired, it will never be quite the same and it will take some time to fill the deep scratches and then repaint the entire head of John Blazer, with no additional budget remaining for repairs or restoration.'
