Response to letters concerning mural
May 17, 2002
To the editor:
In a spirit of openness and fairness to all involved I would like to respond to the concerns raised by those who wrote letters regarding the mural at Hightstown High School and to provide the background to the article that appeared in the Windsor-Hights Herald on Friday, May 3, 2002: "Questions raised over mural's ethnic inclusiveness."
Several weeks ago I received a call from Chris Karmiol, a reporter from the Windsor-Hights Herald, who asked me if we could discuss several topics that he was working on for possible articles. One of the topics was a mural that was being painted in Hightstown High. I replied that I had seen the beginnings of the mural but I did not know much about it. He then discussed some of his impressions of the mural and asked me if I would be willing to comment for an article that he planned to write. I was told at the time that there would be others who were being contacted to get their views on the mural so as to provide a balanced article. He told me that he had an outline of the mural and that we could use this to discuss the mural. The discussion lasted for about an hour-and-a-half. Before I left I made it a point to ask Mr. Karmiol to be sure to convey my comments in the spirit with which they were made — one of openness and fairness.
During our conversation I gave my personal observations regarding the mural. At no time was there any display of emotion and certainly no personal negative comments were made about the artist. The freedom of the artist was never questioned. I have heard that the artist is a good teacher and a very fine artist. I do not doubt that. But that is not the point. I disagreed with the perspective of the artist, not his ability as a teacher or artist. Ther is a difference between not agreeing with an artist and asserting his or her right to paint or write according to their vision. A school, however, is a public space and everybody has the right to comment on a mural both before and after it is displayed.
I hope that this background information helps to put the article in perspective. Finally, I would be glad to participate in a public forum to discuss the issues raised by the mural. There is no better way to interact with students than to invite them to join in a dialogue in which they can participate and see the democratic values of citizenship in action.
Dr. David Abalos
East Windsor