Pearcy’s American-Flag-in-Toilet Gets Flushed
Part-time lawyer and beginner artist Stephen Pearcy is disappointed that his California Justice Department exhibit is almost at an end. Pearcy’s finger-painting depicts an American flag in the shape of the United States being flushed down a toilet and has been at the center of a free speech free-for-all in Sacramento.
I say almost at an end because California Attorney General Bill Lockyer couldn’t quite bring himself to completely remove the painting that not only insults American flags, but the President as well. Instead, he had it removed from the cafeteria where patrons were heartened that they could again eat lunch without being neauseated, and had it reinstalled in a hallway near the 17th floor men’s room.
Attorney General Lockyer, a sponsor of the ridiculous exhibit, has managed to avoid the media directly by hanging his frontman, Nathan Barankin, out to take the flak. But it looks like Lockyer wasn’t so lucky in avoiding Governer Schwarznegger because after sponsoring the exhibit and praising the artistic talent of the artist/lawyers saying that it is “an honor to co-host this powerful exhibit… the collected fine works of these artists – and lawyers – achieve these worthwhile objectives with style and beauty,†he suddenly decided to remove the painting under the cover of darkness.
The interesting thing about all this is that the people involved in foisting this exhibition on unsuspecting cafeteria clientele are now at odds with one another over free speech and censorship issues.
Attorney General Lockyer, speaking through mouthpiece Barankin, said the painting had been spirited away ”out of concern for the events going on in the Middle East right now.” An ambiguous statement if ever there was one. Barankin added that it was a department decision and didn’t amount to censorship.
Ellen Taylor, an organizer for the exhibit who is a little ticked that no one told her the painting was to be removed, disagrees with Barankin. Pondering the implications of the painting removal, she was heard to say, ”It made you really stop and talk and think about what the Constitution really means. What would it mean, then, to not allow it to be there because you don’t like what it says?”
Thank you Ellen for framing the real question so neatly for us. The Constitution guarantees the right of free speech but it doesn’t guarantee you the right to be heard. And it certainly doesn’t guarantee that your message must be dispalayed on the cafeteria wall of a government building. The government, federal or state, should not be the sponsor of, or forum for, one particular political ideology. I hope that answered your question Ellen.
And Pearcy, who obviously dislikes institutional food, dejectedly whined, ”This exhibition, the sole purpose was to have it… in the public space — in the cafeteria.” Here’s some free advice: next time, paint a smiley face instead of an American flag going into the toilet.