Confederate flag in mural hung in Crossroads report, October 26, 2020

Report produced by the Community Bias Response Team (CBRT) regarding a complaint made about a Confederate flag visible in a mural hanging in Crossroads Cafe entitled "Juxtaposed Realities."

Juxtaposed Realities was created in 2007 in partnership between visiting scholar and artist Duda Penteado and members of the Middlebury College community. Penteado invited Middlebury students, faculty, and staff to envisage, “What does it mean to have social change at Middlebury?” This mural, Juxtaposed realities, represents their creative, collaborative response. Diverse images, including an article from the Campus newspaper, a drawing of US president George W. Bush, and a GLBTQ sticker, reflect political, sexual, and cultural themes important to Middlebury members and to others around the world. Words from different languages express diverse linguistic and cultural identities, complemented by representations of various countries in the background, such as Mexico, Israel, and Palestine. The many different eyes suggest the plurality of identities and perspectives through which the challenges of social change can be interpreted. The yellow overlapping hands with eyes located on the right side of the mural invite us to consider the power of collaborative work and the possibilities of cross-cultural partnership. Juxtaposed Realities embodies intentional collaboration, fostering dialogues about the role of diversity in social change.

Text from label hung on wall in Crossroads Cafe: "Juxtaposed Realities evolved out of the 'Vistion for Social Change at Middlebury' mural project led by Visiting Twilight Scholar and Fine Artist Duda Penteado in 2007. The project, which included a diverse group of students, faculty, and staff, was about using art to create dialogue and to investigate Middlebury's role in social change and global engagement. Duda Penteado's artisitic process for the mural includes historial references and inspiration from other artists."

The mural was removed from Crossroads Cafe by the head of Dining Services after students made a complaint to the Community Bias Response Team citing a Confederate flag contained within the mural.