University of Virginia Library

Council Bans Wall Repainting
Despite Angry Protests By 200

By Mike Russell
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

More than 200 people, black and white,
students, faculty and residents marched from
the Carver Recreation center to City Hall to
protest the destruction of the Concerned Black
Youths' Wall of Respect last night.

Crowding the Council's Chambers the
protesters, for the seventh consecutive Council
meeting in a period of fourteen weeks,
expressed their distress and anger at the
Council's decision not to allow the "Wall" to be
repainted.

Reverend Howard Gordon, a minister at
Westminster Presbyterian Church, began the
public's part of the agenda by reminding the
Council that they had just recited the Pledge of
Allegiance, and he in his dealings with the
Council over the matter of the "Wall" had seen
"no freedom, no justice, or Christian love."

The Wall of Respect was a series of painting
of black heroes which were portrayed on the
walls of the Carver Recreation Center. They
were painted under the supervision of a
recreation department employee and took
nearly a month to complete.

Portrait Removal

Almost immediately after their completion,
the City Manager, together with the head of the
recreation department decided that the portraits
were of a racist nature and should be
removed. They then contacted the head of the
youth group, indicating that something had to
be done about the pictures, and less than twelve
hours later had them over.

The anger by the action created was first
vented at a Council meeting near the end of
July. The Concerned Youth group for an
explanation of the Department's action and
were told that the policy of the department was
not to allow racially biased pictures to appear
on public property. Councilman Joseph Wright
stated, "I hope that the city never stoops so
low as to allow pictures of Carmichael
and Rap Brown to appear on City property.

The youth group dissented, arguing that
by allowing pictures of Jefferson, Madison, and
, all of whom they considered racists, to
appear on public property, the City was itself
maintaining a racist point of view. As a result,
City Manager Jim Bowen has had the portraits
of Messrs. Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe
painted over at the 13th Floor, the predominantly
white recreation center.

After Reverend Gordon spoke, the audience
stood in ovation. A member of the Black Youth
was recognized, and he told the Council about a
meeting held between Mr. Wyant, the director
of recreation, and Larry Fortune, a representative
of the youth group. According to Mr.
Fortune, Mr. Wyant agreed that the wall would
be returned through one of two alternatives.
The student, he said, could use paint that
appeared only under a specific type of light, or
could hand for the pictures when the
room was being used by the students and
youth.

City Policy

Mr. Wyant further told Mr. Fortune that he
would write a letter conveying this agreement
of the City Manager. This was never done. The
letter Mr. Forthne received indicated that the
"Wall" could and would not be returned, and
that the policy of the City was to display in
public only the photos of prominent men or
those pictures related to the activities of the
office.

Having read the letter Mr. Fortune turned to
the Council and said, "We are at the run
around that City Council has given us," and
then, "Do we get our Wall back, or do we not?"

Acting Mayor William responded
by saying that, "Council can't cater to every
little group that comes to it." Hen then read
the statement of policy that had been sent to
Mr. Fortune indicating that this was the feeling
of the whole Council. Councilman Van
was recognized and stated that he dissented and
did not favor the Council's action.

Other members of the community reacted
by telling the Council that the people of the
city were all different, having "different needs,
different wants." A black man in the back of
the hall told the Council that they had not
ended the problem by making their statement,
but had "just begun it."

Applause, Cheers

As the speakers finished, the
whole audience reacted with applause, cheers,
shouts of "Right on brother," or "Power to the
people,' appeared that the meeting might go
on indefinitely.

After nearly forty-five minutes of discussion,
Mr. indicated that the matter
was closed and that no more speakers would be
recognized on that point. The members of the
audience refused to let the matter end, and
began singing and shouting "stay here." At this
time Mr. recessed the meeting and
the Council walked out.

The crowd stayed and an impromptu
discussion began over the failure of the Council
to act, not only on the "Wall of Respect" but
on the many requests the Quakers had been
making for four months. One speaker stated
that the Council's inaction on the proposals for
fair housing, an ombudsman with powers of
arbitration, and a committee on unity were
further of failure to act
responsibility as City governors. He called for a