Banksy Mural on Lighthouse a Critique of “Republican Deluge”

The piece, sparking large controversy within the community, is said by critics to be a commentary on the island’s recent “Republican Deluge.” The mural centers around a great ocean wave, barreling toward small, colorful houses and figures in its periphery. Atop the wave sits larger depictions of houses, shaded in beige. 

The village’s influx of wealthier and politically right-leaning homeowners has been a subject of contention for several years now, following Donald Trump’s first presidency. The cost of year-round housing climbs like sea level, and much of Ocracoke’s traditionally middle class inhabitants are drowned out by the cascade of week-long rentals aimed at maximizing profit for multi-homeowners—and multi-millionaires.

How Banksy—anonymous graffitist and pop culture icon operating primarily out of major global cities like London and New York—got wind of this issue remains a mystery for Ocracoke locals and Banksy enthusiasts alike.

Local indie-sleaze-punk star and longtime thespian Surf Shit welcomes the exposition, crediting Banksy with the inspiration for their upcoming concept album “Douchebag Deluge or How Conservatives Gentrified Having Your Ass Out on the Beach.” 

“All the while Ocracoke’s been getting seized, it’s also been getting subtly more punk in response,” said Surf Shit. “We all saw Susan Dodd’s house,” the musician said, alluding to the naked Barbie dolls hanging from trees in the local artist’s yard that have become a popular tourist attraction, and something of an urban legend to the more gullible lot. (No, they aren’t really the voodoo dolls of ten-year-old visitors whose foolish parents let them drive golf carts at five miles an hour.)

“I don’t know why people are shocked. I think I speak for all artists when I say, we've been making statements,” Surf Shit said.

Some islanders are less enthralled by the political message and more concerned with the “threatening” implications of lighthouse vandalism. Buck Poor, owner of one Ocracoke real estate company, said he “fears art” for the first time since Warhol. 

“What’s next, they start building these three-story-high protest installments all over town that obstruct the entire view of the Lighthouse?” Poor said. 

Oh wait.

Nevertheless, Ocracoke has once again been placed on a map far surpassing the island’s sixteen-mile length. Bansky is rumored to be making their way along the upper Outer Banks in the weeks to come. (Secure those neo-Nazi for Israel signs, Hatteras! Let’s not forget about locking Her up, either—we wouldn’t want to risk any criminals running for a first, second or third term.) 

Meanwhile, local artists are convening at the scene to show solidarity with the statement. Molasses Creek played their hit song “Waterbound” with a slight lyric change: 

Waterbound and can’t buy a home, 

waterbound and can’t buy a home, 

waterbound and can’t buy a home, 

Down in Far-Right Carolina!