The Governor of Maine made a unilateral decision to take down a piece of art in the Department of Labor because it was too pro-Labor and did not depict the Pro-Business perspective. The piece of art was commissioned by the state of Maine after a committee reviewed applications and approved the content of the mural. That committee had more authority to speak for the people because it was a group of citizens rather than just one person who disagreed with the political inclination of the work. Art is not alway made to be “fair and balanced,”in the words of the US’ most biased television station. We are not required to be sympathetic to corporations in the same way that we are to humans. The US and state of Maine allows far more “Pro-Business” artwork to be displayed than a Pro-Labor. They are called “Advertisements.” This country is full of them. Where are all these regulations about being balanced, even truthful, when it comes to these ads? There is no requirement at all. Monsanto doesn’t have to make a pro-farmer representation in its advertisements to balance the content (although imagine a world where it does!) Furthermore, history has a way of finding points in its tales that we focus on as its defining moments. Are we as artists supposed to glorify Pinkerton attacks on laborers to “balance” a piece of artwork from being too “pro-labor?” The victories of Labor were at the expense of greedy thugs who desired to the keep the fruits for themselves. History has shown us this.
