Va. school board fires butt-printing art teacher
RICHMOND, Va. ‚Äö√Ñ√Æ An art teacher whose off-hours work as a so-called “butt-printing artist” became widely circulated among high school students has been fired. The Chesterfield County School Board, in a unanimous voice vote, fired Stephen Murmer at a meeting Tuesday night, spokeswoman Debra Marlow said. In its decision, the board reasoned that students have a right to receive their education in an environment free from distractions and disruptions, Marlow said. The decision also is in keeping with court rulings that hold that teachers are expected to lead by example and be role models, she said. Jason Anthony, Murmer’s attorney, called the vote “a bad day for the First Amendment.”
I thought we’d been through all this before, but it seems that some of you have forgotten a truth which should be self-evident: if you’re going to insist on calling your butt-prints “art”, don’t claim to be surprised when the local school board tosses you out on that same butt. Strangely enough, most adults would contend that their definition of “art” doesn’t include paintings created with the use of body parts that law and social custom generally require to remain covered.
Adults, particularly those with children in school, tend to be a joyless, intolerant lot, fearful of anything that might make said children think and question the world their parents have carefully constructed for them. Art? Uh, well…that’s Rembrandt and Picasso and people holding paint and brushes and standing in front of a canvas. It’s most certainly not a teacher smearing his butt with paint and then doing…well, God only knows what with it.
Of course, Murmer, being your basic DUMB@$$, thought he was immune to this rule. As a true artiste, he probably felt he should be recognized and valued for his artistic and aesthetic contribution to society. Strangely enough, those Conservative anti-artistic types who populate school boards and the parents who elect them tend not to value artistic expression like Murmer’s…especially from a teacher. No, teachers, oddly enough, are expected to set an example…and what they do with their free time really isn’t their own business. After all, it’s all about the children, don’tchaknow??
OHMIGOD…WHAT ABOUT OUR PRECIOUS, IMPRESSIONABLE CHILDREN??? WHO WILL PROTECT THEM??
Whatever….
Murmer, a teacher at Monacan High School, was suspended in December after objections were raised about his private abstract artwork, much of which includes smearing his posterior and genitals with paint and pressing them against canvas.
His paintings sell for as much as $900 each on his Web site.
Damn…I’m in the wrong line of work. Apparently, being a DUMB@$$ pays pretty well these days….
