Last night, the Board of the San Francisco Unified School District voted 4-3 to reverse their decision from June to destroy the “Life of George Washington” WPA-era murals inside the school.
On June 25, the SFUSD Board voted to destroy the controversial mural series, painted in 1936 by artist Victor Arnautoff. The murals cover 1,600 square feet of walls across 13 different panels, and depict the life and history of George Washington, the school’s namesake and the country’s first President.
Three of the thirteen panels in the mural series have come under fire since the 1960’s for their controversial depictions of African-Americans and Native Americans. One panel depicts a dead Native American, and two others depicts African-Americans as slaves.
After nearly two years of debate and consideration, the SFUSD Board voted at their June 25 meeting to destroy the murals by painting them over because they perpetuate negative stereotypes and remind viewers – the young students, faculty and staff of the school – of the painful injustices that Native Americans and African-Americans have endured.
Many felt that the imagery was not appropriate for a school setting. One Board member likened their destruction to making reparations to those minority groups for the damage the murals had caused.
At the June 25 meeting, the Board acknowledged the road to destruction of the murals would be long due to legal issues, so they indicated that until they could be destroyed, they would cover up the murals to remove them from public view.
Board changes its mind after intense public scrutiny
But at Tuesday night’s meeting, the Board voted 4-3 to reverse their decision to destroy the murals altogether. Rather than paint over the murals at a future date, they voted cover the controversial panels in the “Life of Washington” series with panel overlays depicting “the heroism of people of color in America” and their fight against racism.
A similar decision was made in the 1970’s when the debate first began over the content of the mural. In 1974, local artist Dewey Crumpler was commissioned to paint response murals in the school. His murals, entitled “Multi-Ethnic Heritage: Black, Asian, Native/Latin American”, depict Latin Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and African Americans overcoming oppression.
The June 25 decision to destroy the murals was met with outcry from George Washington High School alumni, residents, local art preservationists, and media from across the country. The SFUSD Board was accused of censorship and trying to whitewash the history that the original socialist artist, Victor Arnautoff, intentionally depicted to remind viewers of our country’s – and president’s – dark past.
Actor Danny Glover, a Washington High graduate, joined the coalition to save the murals and said that destroying or blocking them from view “would be akin to book burning.”
Tuesday night’s meeting was heated and emotional, and the topic continues to spark much debate between those who believe the WPA-era murals should be preserved, and those that believe destroying them is the only path to ending the damage the murals have inflicted on Native Americans and African-Americans.
The first official day of school is August 19, 2019.
Sarah B.
Let’s keep revising history until we can get it right.
Better yet, do away with all public art, just to be safe.
Thank you for reporting on this important issue. You cannot ‘rewrite ‘ history because it doesn’t comport with what ‘should be.’ Learn from it, don’t destroy it. Shelley Mason