By Police1 Staff
DENVER — A drawing of a white officer in a KKK mask pointing a gun at a black child was called “hate art” by Colorado police unions.
The Denver Channel reported the artwork, which is one of dozens hung in the City of Denver’s Wellington Webb Municipal Office Building, shows the officer in front of a Confederate flag.
“I’m shocked, appalled, embarrassed,” president of the Denver Police Protective Association, Nick Rodgers, told the news site.
Rodgers called the work a “horrible stereotype” but was more shocked by where it’s hung — a government building.
“It’s not to be put on display in a government building,” said Rodgers. “That gives it some legitimacy that it actually means something.”
The National Latino Peace Officers Association called the drawing “hate art” and are “highly insulted by the public display.”
The unions drafted letters to the mayor asking for removal of the art. Rodgers also demanded an apology from the mayor.
“I want him to issue an apology to current Denver police officers and retired Denver police officers and their families. Because they don’t deserve this,” Rodgers said.
Mayor Michael Hancock’s office told KDVR they have organized a meeting with the artist, the chief of police and a school superintendent to come to a resolution.
The drawing isn’t the only controversial piece of work on display. Another piece shows Donald Trump as an animal with claws chasing cartoon character Speedy Gonzales across the border.