May 24, 2002

Controversial Mural at Indiana U.

To the Editor:

Your brief report on the recent controversy at Indiana University's Bloomington campus over a mural by Thomas Hart Benton that depicts scenes from Indiana history, including a Ku Klux Klan cross burning that offended many students, was a disservice to the university and to your readers ("Sense and Censorship," Short Subjects, April 12).

The controversy challenged the campus to honor equally cherished goals that seemed to have come into conflict: commitments to