September 30, 2007
Mt. Davidson Plaque Stolen
Whether this is a hate crime or simply a theft, we are flabbergasted that this story has barely made the news. The valuable bronze plaque commemorating the Armenian Genocide that occurred in the early 20th century was discovered missing on Sunday the 23rd, during an event to recognize Armenian Independence Day.
Although police are calling this a "a very serious matter," word hadn't gotten out until this last Thursday. In cases like these, one would think time is of the essence. For all we know the plaque has already been sold off for its valuable bronze.
For those of us who live in the neighborhood, it's extremely surprising/disturbing that this 160-pound plaque that stood a the foot of the cross marking the highest point in San Francisco was so easily stolen without anyone noticing.
The hike up to the Mt. Davidson peak is a popular hike for dog walkers and soul searchers alike. The view from the top is unrivaled by other more touristy peaks in the city, in our humble opinion.
Whomever had the nerve to steal this plaque, precious not only to Bay Area Armenians, but also to Mt. Davidson neighbors, must have some pretty big balls. We hope they're caught and punished! Hate crimes in this city are a regular occurrence.
Between recent swastika tagging in our own editor's building and genocide memorial swiping near West Portal, we hope that the police are truly serious about finding these nervy perps and bringing them to justice.
Read more about the crime here.
Cross Image: NBC 11
Plaque Image: SFPD
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Adios> I wish someone would steal the cross too.
It's clearly a religious symbol that does not belong - so the city had a sham acution and sold the tiny piece of land that the cross sits on to the highest bidder. It was $69,000 for the piece of land that is on the highest point in SF. Pretty good deal, eh?
Now the turkish groups hate the Armenian groups even more. A perfect thing for SF to do right -sell the cross to promote a bit more hatred between rival groups.
The bible thumpers go up there at dawn every easter blaring their shitty music over loudspeakers so no one within a mile can sleep.
All santeria priests- a perfect spot for a chicken sacrifice or maybe a goat next year. I'll pay your bail.
Is it really Oct 1st already? Funny, I thought today was the 30th...
This is awful. APB on bitter Turks.
Mariconsoy, this non-Christian Mt. Davidson neighbor actually likes and appreciates the giant cross. Sorry you're intolerant of their religious practices.
I agree with Seamus.
There are those who want to tear down Sutro Tower, which is obviously some kind of pagan altar or alien landing site - I disagree with them too.
If we let ALL the religious icons stand we wind up culturally richer and no less tolerant than we were before - and I'm an atheist.
Given that scrap metal thieves will steal copper pipes with water in them (as happened in my dad's building) or the copper wire from electric motors (as reported on farms in the central valley) this was most likely the work of a few guys looking for quick money. The sad thing is that someone then had to buy it, which means that some bay area scrap metal dealer turned a blind eye when someone brought in a huge bronze commemorative plaque for scrap.
I know that the majority of people who live near the cross like it, but that doesn't make it right.
What I'm not tolerant of is having a specific religion shoved down my throat e.g. blaring religious hymns on loudpeakers at 6:00AM when I'm trying to sleep.
I've been down the road of debate on this issue many times and learned it's a waste of time to reach out to people like the last two posters.
My question to them is "would you be as hot and bothered about the issue if the cross were another giant religous symbol like a star of David or a ________?"
BTW I believe in God and Jesus, but the cross or any other religous symbol should not be there. This is not a [christian] theocracy.
So you're against the Easter service. Great; they shouldn't be permitted to blare music at 6am.
And yes, I'm okay with any religious symbol appearing on private property. If it really were still city park land, I'd be annoyed. But knowing that the Armenian org spent $69k for that land, I'm cool with the cross.