ACLU Sues City Over Covered-Up Mural

The American Civil Liberties Union contends in a lawsuit that city recreation and parks commissioners unlawfully censored an artist when they voted to cover his portion of a city-commissioned mural and then prohibited him from painting an alternative design in its place.

In the suit in federal court, ACLU board member and attorney Stephen Rohde is seeking an injunction against the commission, which would allow 23-year-old artist Richard Taylor to contribute to a city-sponsored mural at the oceanside Venice Pavilion.

Rohde said at a news conference Monday that commissioners barred Taylor from the mural because of the ideological content of his artwork. He said their action violates his client’s 1st Amendment rights and a city building code prohibiting censorship.

“It [is not] up to a handful of commissioners to dictate that only messages they agree with can go there,” Rohde said. “Sometimes what shows in the mirror is not attractive, but that is the very nature of art.”

The mural was created in August under the direction of the Social and Public Art Resource Center, a Venice-based arts organization.

During the daylong paint-in, the walls of an outdoor space known as the graffiti pit were decorated by nearly 100 young artists, including Taylor.

The image Taylor painted included a pig dressed in a blue uniform beating someone painting graffiti. Police and some Venice residents harshly criticized the painting as portraying law enforcement unfavorably.

Commissioners said Taylor’s design had not received proper authorization, and in September voted to cover up his art. Assistant City Atty. Mark Brown would not comment on the suit, which was filed Thursday, saying that he had not seen a copy.

After his original drawing was covered, Taylor submitted an alternative design, showing a family fleeing from a threatening boar while a vulture with a television camera films them from above. The design was also rejected by the commission, Rohde said.

“I guess they don’t want tourists on the boardwalk to know that there are kids in L.A. that have some problems with the way things are,” said Brooke Oliver, an attorney for the arts organization. “But not letting those kids tell their story only drives them outside the system. It’s not only illegal, it’s unwise.”