Crews from the Florida Department of Transportation arrived around 8 p.m. to paint over the mural outside the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museum, according to a spokesman for the St. Petersburg Police Department. That’s when Oliver and Atherton walked past police, then sat and knelt down to pray in the road and refused to move “in an attempt to block the FDOT machinery.”
They were both charged with misdemeanor obstruction and “Pedestrian obstructing or hindering traffic,” according to SPPD’s public information officer.
The Subject Charge Report from the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office says Oliver, 45, has been released on cash bond and charged with resisting an officer w/o violence a misdemeanor. Atherton-Zeman, 45, has also been released on cash bond and faces the same charges.
After their release Oliver and Atherton-Zeman returned to the site of the mural and went to social media to cite a letter penned in 1915 by Woodson himself to the then-president of Washington D.C.’s NAACP chapter.
“Carter G. Woodson’s words echo to us in this moment,” Oliver wrote, “’Let us banish fear… I am a radical. I am ready to act, if I can find brave [people] to help me.’”
Woodson’s home in Washington D.C. is actually part of the National Parks Service, but is currently closed with plans to reopen in 2026, according to NPS. It’s unclear if the artifacts and message preserved at the site will be revised under Trump’s latest push to rewrite and restore “truth and sanity to American history.”
This is the third of five city murals FDOT removed Friday after issuing a statewide mandate last month banning pavement art. University of South Florida St. Petersburg’s USF-themed mural and a geometric intersection in the Child’s Park neighborhood were also reportedly removed, according to USF St. Pete’s student newspaper the Crow’s Nest, which said that the state arrived to remove the “Fluid Structures” mural at about 3 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 29.
The mural was completed during the 2023 Shine mural festival by Tampa artist Jay Giroux and 10 students from USF St. Pete, according to the paper, which added that “the mural depicted a marine ecosystem through a series of geometric shapes, and did not feature any political or identity-related symbols.”
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St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch told reporters last week that he would let FDOT execute its own mandate to remove all street murals by its Sept. 4 deadline. Municipalities were tasked with removing their own street art until FDOT painted over a rainbow crosswalk honoring Pulse victims in Orlando last week.
At a press conference with city and St. Pete Pride leaders last week, Welch said fighting the mandate as cities like Key West and Delray Beach have done would be a losing battle not worth the risk of millions in vital state transportation funds.
The city would instead strategize a way to “build back stronger” and replace the street murals with “even more powerful expressions of who we are.”
He also advised residents to “obey the law,” specifically not to block intersections.
“Don’t take the bait,” Welch said. “Be smart about how we take these next steps.”
When asked by a reporter if the mural removal was an opportunity for “good trouble,” a reference Welch often makes to a quote from Civil Rights leader John Lewis—who was arrested and beaten multiple times for peacefully protesting—Welch said yes.
When asked for an example, he responded, “when we build back better and stronger.”
This is a developing story.
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This article appears in Aug 28 – Sep 3, 2025.