Joe Anderson pledges to replace The List, which has been targeted since its installation in the city in July

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The mayor of Liverpool has vowed the city “will not be beaten by fascist thugs” after a memorial to dead migrants and refugees was vandalised.

The List, an art project which features the names of the 34,361 people who lost their lives trying to reach Europe since 1993, was covered with the words “INVADERS NOT REFUGEES!” The installation was torn down twice this summer and said they would no longer repair it “as a manifestation and reminder of systematic violence exercised against people.”

Joe Anderson, the mayor of Liverpool, said the people who vandalised the piece by Istanbul-based artist Banu Cennetoğlu “have had their brains invaded by hatred”.

Joe Anderson (@mayor_anderson) Those responsible for this defacement of a memorial to innocent dead people fleeing for their lives, have had their brains invaded by hatred. We will not be beaten by facist thugs and we will pay for another memorial. I want volunteers to help me protect it. #hopenothate💜 pic.twitter.com/DVA3Snt1bB

The List, which is updated every year by the group United for Intercultural Action, was published by the Guardian on World Refugee Day this year.

In August, the Liverpool Biennial festival organisers and the artist released a joint statement in which they said the 280-metre hoarding on Great George Street had been “repeatedly damaged, removed and targeted” since it was installed.

The statement added that the artwork had not been vandalised when it was shown in previous cities, including Berlin, Istanbul, Basel and Athens.

Banu Cennetoğlu: 'As long as I have resources, I will make The List more visible' Read more

Last month, a Liverpool city council spokesperson said they were “saddened by this mindless act of vandalism” and expressed “surprise and disgust at such a rare occurrence in the city”.

“We will be working with them to try and turn this action into a positive and shine a light on how we need to do more to promote a tolerant and compassionate society,” they said.

Liverpool Biennial is the UK’s largest festival of contemporary visual art. Every two years, it commissions artists from around the world to make and present work in public spaces, galleries and museums around the city.