48
edits
Distress Flag Mural (public art): Difference between revisions
From Censorpedia
no edit summary
No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| (One intermediate revision by the same user not shown) | |||
| Line 9: | Line 9: | ||
|date_of_action=April-June 2018 | |date_of_action=April-June 2018 | ||
|location=San Diego-Tijuana border | |location=San Diego-Tijuana border | ||
|description_of_content= | |description_of_content='The Distress Flag Mural' was created by Amos Gregory, a San Francisco-based muralist, community activist and disabled Navy veteran. This was part of the Veterans Mural Project, or Veterans Alley, in attempts to highlight the adversities of US veterans. | ||
In 2013, the artist collaborated with a group of 20 deported veterans to design a mural on the south side of the San Diego-Tijuana border wall, referred to as the 'Friendship Circle'. Occasionally opened by the US Border, this area has become a meeting point for seperated families. | |||
The painting depicts a distressed (inverted) US flag with crosses, representing the upsetting reality of nearly 70 veterans in Tijuana, Mexico. Following their discharge from the military, several veterans were convicted of crimes and subsequently deported. With this artwork, Gregory aimed to encapsulate the emotional, psychological and medical damages of these deported veterans, which cannot be treated adequately in Mexico. | The painting depicts a distressed (inverted) US flag with crosses, representing the upsetting reality of nearly 70 veterans in Tijuana, Mexico. Following their discharge from the military, several veterans were convicted of crimes and subsequently deported. With this artwork, Gregory aimed to encapsulate the emotional, psychological and medical damages of these deported veterans, which cannot be treated adequately in Mexico. | ||
| Line 18: | Line 18: | ||
Thereafter, Daniel Kitzman, a supervisory border agent for the San Diego Sector of the US Border Patrol, contacted Hector Lopez, co-founder of the US Deported Veterans support house, obliging Gregory to remove or alter the painted flag. This was the first objection made since the creation of the mural five years ago, insinuating political disagreements and an attempt by the federal government to squelch free speech. | Thereafter, Daniel Kitzman, a supervisory border agent for the San Diego Sector of the US Border Patrol, contacted Hector Lopez, co-founder of the US Deported Veterans support house, obliging Gregory to remove or alter the painted flag. This was the first objection made since the creation of the mural five years ago, insinuating political disagreements and an attempt by the federal government to squelch free speech. | ||
Subsequently, Gregory refused to change the painting, asserting that his aim was to "raise awareness around the issue of deported veterans. It's not about us trying to take on our own government or us trying to create imagery that's hostile toward the United States of America" (Gregory, April 2018). | Subsequently, Gregory refused to change the painting, asserting that his aim was to "raise awareness around the issue of deported veterans. It's not about us trying to take on our own government or us trying to create imagery that's hostile toward the United States of America" (Gregory, April 2018). | ||
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) advised USCBP, to respect the artistic expression of deported US military veterans and artists, who are protected by federal acts and the First Amendment. NCAC wrote a letter to the San Diego Sector of USCBP on this basis. | The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) advised USCBP, to respect the artistic expression of deported US military veterans and artists, who are protected by federal acts and the First Amendment. NCAC wrote a letter to the San Diego Sector of USCBP on this basis. | ||
