Update: These two murals are about to be put on the schedule as part of the $100,000 taxpayer-funded Lemon Park Mural restoration project, so now it’s time to ask the question again…
There has been some discussion over the past few years about what to do with the aging and in some cases repeatedly defaced murals that adorn the pedestrian bridge over Lemon Street.
When I went to take some pictures recently, a new twist on the story occurred to me, and one which the ACLU-types don’t seem to have noticed: the promotion of Christianity on public property. On the east side support an actual Catholic shrine has emerged.
An interesting situation, to say the least, and one in which any artistic statement has obviously morphed into an obviously overt religious expression. Do these murals get a pass as a cultural expression that, say, a Christmas display in front of City Hall wouldn’t?
As always we welcome your thoughts on the subject.