In July, 2024 a historic mass movement was held in my country and it was led by students, when I went out after a long time I came across murals and paintings done in public places. It was nothing disrespectful, artist painted those pictures which depicted the situation during the movement and the face of the people who were the martyrs. So, should this be banned? I don't think so as long it's not disrespectful. But some people may still dislike it. Because we are never satisfied anything we always find errors in it.
Local people had demanded to remove those wall paintings because they thought it was unnecessary but to the students it was something precious. The parents who had lost their child, to them it was more than a painting. So, we can already spot different opinions. Does that mean those who disagreed are a bad person? Of course not, because we can't expect someone to answer according to what we would like to hear. We can never change ones mind unless they want to change themselves.
But such things should be not tolerated if it's being disrespectful. Hurting doesn't mean it has to be physical, I think if you're hurt emotionally that hurts the same as the physical one. So, if they can be found to be offensive then we should try to prevent them. After that they might start saying they have freedom of speech but I don't think arts should be protected under free speech. But if no one gets hurt in the process it shouldn't matter that much.
So one day, I was walking home from school, I noticed that someone had painted birds on the long wall beside our school. A few days later, I walked past the same place again but this time someone had painted huge words over the birds. It was by some people who were doing movements for their rights, but those words were rude and insulting towards a specific group of people. So, the birds on the wall which made smile once now made me uncomfortable. That was the first time I wondered where the line between art and free speech should be.
I don't think public art should be banned just because some people do not like it. I don't find it useful, but we should know that freedom always comes with responsibility and we can't ignore that. I know that we have the right to say or paint something does not mean we always should. Public place means it belongs to everyone not to a specific person or group. If an artwork is made only to spread hate and make others feel unsafe then it is no longer just about expressing an opinion. It starts affecting other people.
Anyway, I would say that if a artist paints a picture which questions unfair rules or encourages people to care for the environment then it should be allowed. Some people might try to oppose it and we can not expect everyone to agree with our point of view. I personally think, free speech is there to protect creativity and honesty but it should not become an excuse to spread hate on others. We should be free to paint ideas, not free to disrespect people. Also, being respectful does not cost money.
The pictures are created with chatgpt.
