WASHINGTON �� The Capitol high school art competition painting of police-community relations in Ferguson, Mo., which was the subject of a dispute between Democrats and Republicans this past week, will be removed from public display.
Rep. Dave Reichert, R-Wash., said the painting, which depicts police officers as animals, was ruled in violation of House Office Building Commission rules and will be taken down after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, CNN reported.
Reichert wrote a letter earlier in the week to the Architect of the Capitol, which led that office to determine that the painting was a violation of House rules.
Throughout the week, the painting was taken down by four Republican members of Congress on three different occasions, and taken to the office of its sponsor, Rep. William Lacy Clay, D-Mo., whose district includes Ferguson.
On Thursday, Speaker Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis., called for the painting to be removed. On a radio show, he called it "disgusting."
The artist, David Pulphus, whom Clay consistently defended, was a high school student in Clay's district when submitted his work to the contest. He is now in college in Chicago.
Currently, the painting hangs with other contest winners after being rehung during the week.
