A mural depicting Republican Maine Gov. Paul LePage in the white robes of a Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard painted by graffiti artists on a city-owned wall in Portland, Maine, will be allowed to stay where it because it’s protected by “free speech,” the city has decided.
The image of the controversial governor appeared on the wall of a wastewater treatment facility on Portland’s east side alongside the words “racist, homophobe and moron” over Labor Day Weekend.
Reaction to the mural was predictably heated judging from the vitriol on the Facebook page of local television station, WMTW-TV, which first reported the controversy. Some commenters said the governor, who has come under fire for a series of comments deemed insensitive to minorities, is getting what he deserved. Others said similar sentiments about disadvantaged groups would never be allowed in the name of free speech.
First elected in 2010 and now in his second term, LePage has gained notoriety for his colorful language and quick temper. He has referred to the IRS as the “new Gestapo,” openly discussed the lubricant powers of Vaseline during sodomy, and once insisted that President Obama “hates white people.” More recently, he was pilloried in the press for insisting that Maine’s heroin epidemic is the fault of young black and Latino dealers who come to the state to peddle their wares and impregnate young white women.
When asked whether the words and image of LePage would be removed because they might cause offense, water district officials told WMTW that it’s the city of Portland’s job to determine what is offensive and remove it if necessary. Artists have been allowed to paint murals on the walls of the facility for 15 years, and nothing has ever been censored because of content.
City officials told the station that the mural will stay as is.
