Art to Remember

On February 16, 2005, Bethel’s second annual Reconciliation Day, a massive three-piece mural was installed in a prominent place on campus as a form of remembrance and healing following a series of racial incidents two years earlier. In cases that were isolated but nevertheless shocking to the Bethel community in 2003, graffiti and symbols of hate had been targeted at students of color. An arrest and conviction took place in connection with one of the crimes, but Bethel as an institution needed a way to express its repudiation of all such acts and resume its progress toward multicultural unity.

The Bethel Antiracism and Reconciliation Commission (BARRC) commissioned a painting for that purpose. Working with students, art professor Dale Johnson created three large 5’ by 8’ panels, titled “Remember. Believe. Act.” and supervised their installation in the Academic Center lounge. The first panel recalls the pain of the incidents and all racial hate crimes; the second shows tools of healing, including the cross and prayer; and the third shows damage under repair along with other signs of hope. But a three-dimensional pulley also begs the question: Is racism a weight to always bear, or a burden being lifted? The choice is ours.