Indiana U to stop holding classes in room with KKK mural

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) - Indiana University says beginning next spring, it'll no longer hold classes in a room where a mural panel depicts a Ku Klux Klan rally.

The scene that's part of a 22-panel Thomas Hart Benton mural created in the 1930s hangs in Room 100 at Woodburn Hall on the Bloomington campus. The mural panels depicting Indiana history are spread over three buildings.

IU Executive Vice President and Provost Lauren Robel said in a statement Friday the room will have other uses beginning next spring semester.

Jacquline Barrie, a former IU student who started a petition calling for the mural's removal that collected more than more than 1,000 signatures, told The Indianapolis Star she considers the university's decision a "small victory." She has said the scene is a symbol of hate.

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Information from: The Indianapolis Star, http://www.indystar.com