A noose was found hanging from a tree outside a church in Washington, DC, on Friday morning.
St. Mark’s Episcopal Church is just a few blocks from the United States Capitol and has a Black Lives Matter banner on the front of the building.
DC advisor Charles Allen first posted about the incident on Twitter, describing it as a “despicable symbol and act of hatred.“
“Denounce it loud and clear – hatred has no home here,” tweeted Allen, adding that the Metropolitan Police Department has been working with the church leadership on the ground.
Police officers at the scene removed the noose from the large tree in which it was found and kept it as evidence, NBC Washington reported.
“When I saw this, I was really angry,” said Reverend Michele Morgan, the church’s dean, to the news station. “I think symbols of racialized hatred are used exactly to scare a lot of people.”
The Metropolitan Police Department did not immediately respond to the NBC News email for comment on Saturday, but officials have investigated the incident as a possible hate crime, according to NBC Washington.
The incident occurred when the church was preparing to welcome The Thirteen, a professional vocal ensemble set to broadcast a church performance live on Saturday night. The production seeks to confront systemic racism, and the man who plays the role of Jesus is black.
It is unclear whether the group was being targeted, but the group’s leader said the incident is adding new meaning to his performance.
“When talking to the musicians today, we all decided that it made the work we are doing even more important,” Matthew Robertson, the artistic director of The Thirteen, told NBC Washington.
Morgan said it is possible that the incident “targets people who are working in this neighborhood and people of color”.
“This symbol does not have to be in our country, in our city and certainly not in a churchyard,” she said.
