Controversial cops-as-pigs painting officially coming down at Capitol
A piece of student artwork depicting police officers as pigs will officially be removed from the wall at the U.S. Capitol, a lawmaker told CNN.
Controversy over the painting by a Missouri high school student caused a national uproar in recent weeks as members of Congress took turns taking the artwork down and then rehanging it.
Rep. Dave Reichert, R.-Wash., who objected to the artwork, told CNN that House Speaker Paul Ryan’s office informed him Friday that it will be taken down after Monday’s Martin Luther King Jr. holiday after an official determination it violates Capitol rules.
The painting features a violent confrontation between police officers and African-American citizens, evoking the riots following the police shooting in 2014 of an unarmed black man in Ferguson, Mo.
Democrat rehangs controversial painting in Capitol
It won an annual art competition in the congressional district of Rep. Lacy Clay, D-Mo. Each member of Congress holds a similar contest each year, with the winning works typically displayed in the Capitol without incident. Not this time.
"The Congressional Art Competition is an opportunity to celebrate the creativity of students in every corner of our country — and visitors from around the world see their talents on display when they walk through the halls of our Capitol," Reichert said in a statement to CNN.
"However, with any competition there are rules, and these rules exist for a reason. This painting hung in clear defiance to those rules and was a slap in the face to the countless men and women who put their lives on the line everyday on behalf of our safety and freedom."
Reichert said he asked the architect of the Capitol to review whether the painting broke the rules, which state: "Exhibits depicting subjects of contemporary political controversy or a sensationalistic or gruesome nature are not allowed."
Congressman hauls down student's cops-as-pigs painting in Capitol
Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., was the first to remove the painting just over a week ago. “I found it offensive. I think its offensive to the men and women who protect our country. I was in the Marine Corps,” he told USA TODAY at the time. He took it to Clay’s office.
On Tuesday, Clay and other African-American lawmakers rehung it. “This is really not about a student art competition anymore,” Clay said. “It’s about defending the Constitution.”
A little while later, another Republican lawmaker took it down. Clay put it back up.
Ryan told radio host Mike Gallagher on Thursday that he thinks the painting is "disgusting" and "not befitting the Capitol.”
"This isn't a question of First Amendment rights," he said, adding the artist has a right to paint it and display it elsewhere. "But we do have rules that govern these paintings. So it's not as if you have a constitutional right to hang whatever painting you want in the House hallway in the Capitol gallery."
"This is not a free-for-all contest,” Ryan said. "We see that this does not fit the rules."
