Mural decision to come today

Today at 10 a.m., Bloomington Chancellor Sharon Brehm will decide the fate of the Thomas Hart Benson mural in Woodburn Hall 100. She will formally announce the decision at a press conference to be held in the Maple Room of the Indiana Memorial Union.\nFriday Brehm said she suspended judgment until the whole range of views were heard. \n"I've consulted everybody, and their brother and sister about this," Brehm said.\nAmong those eagerly awaiting Brehm's decision are the members of the Black Student Union. \nSenior Shannon Walden, political action chair for the BSU, hopes the decision will be fair. \n"I hope she will make a decision that will be acceptable to the students who have a problem with it," Walden said. "I hope she has taken everyone's opinions into consideration and I am hopeful she will make a good decision."\nThe BSU gave Brehm a list of acceptable options, such as covering the mural, moving it to the IU Auditorium where many of the other panels are located or placing the mural in the IU Art Museum. Whatever decision Brehm makes, many people will be eager to hear what she has to say.\nSophomore Carolyn Randolph, vice political action chair for the BSU, is looking for a suitable middle ground. \n"I have mixed emotions, because I think they are going to go with what is easier, or more pacifying," Randolph said. "You can't eradicate the painting without tainting or physically damaging it."\nProfessor Sarah Burns, a specialist in American art history, is also reluctant to see the mural moved. \n"From what I understand, moving them would be highly detrimental," Burns said. "Yet it's easy to see why African-American students find the panel including the Ku Klux Klan scene offensive. Perhaps the University should pursue the 'education' option more vigorously."\nThe education option includes showing a video explaining the origin of the mural to students at the beginning of each semester.\nThe issue of the murals not only affects artists and the BSU, but other students are just as concerned. Sophomore Remus Woods believes the mural has historical value, but is out of place. \n"At first I was against it," Woods said. "I have a class in there this semester, and I really don't want to be looking at the KKK while I am doing my homework, but it should stay somewhere"