More than 100 people visited a mural that's set to be painted over after criticism that it is racist and degrading for its depiction of black and Native American people.
More than 100 people packed the lobby of a public high school here Thursday to view a controversial mural criticized as racist and degrading for its depiction of black and Native American people.for two hours after the San Francisco school board voted in June to paint over the 83-year-old fresco. Since then, there has been much pushback about the decision, including a potential preservation effort and a petition signed by more than 400 academics in protest of the mural’s destruction.
The vast majority of visitors were steadfastly against destroying the mural. Multiple people handed out fliers detailing the history of the mural and arguments against its destruction. Roberta McLaughlin, 78, collected signatures on a poster on which she wrote, “Educate Do Not Eradicate” and said she would present it to the school board in an effort to have the members reconsider their vote.The school board is under the “misguided notion that this mural fosters inequality and racism,” she said.
New Deal scholars have argued that Arnautoff, a Russian-born communist and social critic, critically depicts unsavory aspects of American history in his work. But as early as the 1960s, some students at the high school have argued that the mural’s imagery is offensive and racist.Linda Fadeke Richardson of San Francisco was one of the few people at the viewing who supported the board’s decision to paint over the mural. She said that as an African American, she found the mural derogatory.
Amy Anderson, a San Francisco schoolteacher who is of Native American descent, also supported the board’s decision. Her son is enrolled at the school, and the two have spoken at length about what she calls the hurtful and stereotypical portrayal of Native Americans.
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