School Mural Showed Severed Head Of President Trump, Artist Asked To Alter It After Complaints
During a school event called “Battlegroundz” at the MAAC Community Charter School in Chula Vista, California, an artist named Sasha Andrade painted a controversial mural. In the mural, she depicted three warriors. One held a human heart, another warrior held a shield. The third warrior held up a severed head of President Trump with a spear driven through his head and the tip coming out of his mouth. The background colors are green, white, and red, which matches the Mexican flag’s color combination.
During the annual event, it’s customary for student artists and invited artists to paint a mural in an alley behind the school. It’s unknown at this time whether any of the school officials knew about the contents of the mural before it was painted, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The district, which does not run the charter school, received many phone calls from concerned citizens, both from the community and from people living outside of California. It’s likely that many people heard of it when a local station, KUSI, covered the story.
The artist, Andrade, was already expecting to be censored, saying on her Facebook earlier this week that “They can try to #censor it but here it is guys!!!!” Apparently, George Lopez, the comedian, liked an Instagram post regarding the mural.
FEDERAL CRIME TO THREATEN POTUS – WHERE IS FBI? After community outrage, school officials in Southern California covered part of artist Sasha Andrade's controversial mural depicting President Donald Trump's severed head. WHEN WILL FBI START ENFORCING FEDERAL LAW? @FBI @judicial pic.twitter.com/XhiUSbP7kT
— Keith Emerson (@Paul_Nashua) May 5, 2018
Officials asked Andrade to alter the mural, and the artist has agreed to do so. In the meantime, the mural was covered up by black plastic and later, by pieces of plywood.
“Obviously there’s a lot of concern over what is depicted…Because of that, they’re going to rework it. Our ultimate goal is that instruction continues and is not interrupted.”
The school has stated that the image “does not align with [the] school’s philosophy of non-violence.”
The image of Trump’s decapitated head has angered many people, with some calling for authorities to look into the girl’s intentions further. Andrade, on the other hand, has cited her Constitutional rights to free speech to back up her art.
With the Mexican flag colors woven into the mural, Andrade’s message can be considered in context of current events surrounding Latinos in America. Trump has ramped up immigration enforcement, which has led to the arrest and deportation of many illegal immigrants.
This isn’t the first time the public has seen Trump’s image presented this way. Kathy Griffin previously made headlines and incited controversy during a comedy sketch when she held a fake severed head of President Trump on TV.
