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San Francisco board to consider plan to keep divisive mural

FILE - In this Aug. 1, 2019, file photo, the controversial 13-panel, 1,600-square foot mural, the "Life of Washington" by Russian-American artist Victor Arnautoff, is seen at George Washington High School during an open house for the public in San Francisco. San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education President Stevon Cook says he plans to introduce a solution at the school board meeting Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019, to cover the "Life of Washington" mural without destroying it. Cook says he will propose covering the mural with panels that contain artwork that shows "the heroism of people of color in America, how we have fought against, and continue to battle discrimination, racism, hatred, and poverty." (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)
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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The San Francisco school board will consider a proposal to preserve a controversial mural displayed in a public high school that some have criticized as racist.

San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education President Stevon Cook says he plans to introduce a solution at the school board meeting Tuesday evening to cover the “Life of Washington” mural without destroying it.

Cook says he will propose covering the mural with panels that contain artwork that shows “the heroism of people of color in America, how we have fought against, and continue to battle discrimination, racism, hatred, and poverty.”

The mural was created in 1936 and depicts the life of George Washington. It shows pioneers standing over the dead body of a Native American and slaves working at Washington’s estate.

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