Fact Check: Was Lincoln Memorial Statue defaced during the US protests?

Origin:

A picture of the Lincoln Memorial Statue from the US is been making rounds on social media, especially on Facebook. However, the picture does not show a sparkling clean and white Abraham Lincoln sitting proudly as he looks over his country. It shows a defaced statue, with a chunk of the statue on the left-hand side missing. His face and body are shown as spray-painted with blue, red and black colours. The wall reads 'Black + Brown Lives Matter'. The picture claims:

The Lincoln Memorial, His Head damaged and Defaced. The Media is trying to hide this picture from you. Democrats are saying Riots and Lawlessness is necessary for change!

If this doesn't piss you off
I have nothing else to say

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(Source: Amvets Post Facebook)

The news of Lincoln Memorial Head Damaged is fake

A news source has shared that the picture is fake and misleading. The Lincoln Memorial statue has remained untouched. One can also notice the shoulders on the statue. The uneven surface of the shoulder is also an indication of Photoshop. When one searches for Lincoln Memorial Statue, a recent picture of the same has been uploaded on Getty Images. The picture is of the statue taken on June 6, and it shows how the statue is clean and white and is also untouched. 

(Source: Getty Images)

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Lincoln Memorial vandalized

While the statue has remained untouched, some walls of the Lincoln Memorial were sprayed with graffiti. A wall in front of the Lincoln Memorial was graffitied with the words 'Ya'll Not Tired Yet?' There are no pictures of the statue getting vandalized or ruined by any official sources. 

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Members of D.C. National Guard were deployed to the Memorial to stand guard and protect the statue. As per a news source, the order was given by Attorney General William Barr. It also informs that The Park Service has been told to expect a more militarized presence at its sites. Here is a picture of the troops protecting the Lincoln Memorial. 

While the Lincoln Memorial indeed had some graffiti on a wall claimed to be done by protests, the statue remains untouched. Thus it can be said that the news was misconstrued. A little piece of news seems to have escalated and fake news was shared. 

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Google Trends Analysis

Google Trends Analysis shows how there are a lot of people who are trying to search the truth about this on Google. The searches saw the peak on June 7, 2020, at 3.30 AM. Here are the trends and searches related to the Lincoln Memorial.

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