Vandals defaced the iconic Obama mural on the west wall of the East Gym on Tuesday of last week, white-washing most of the image and spray-painting the Latin words, “Novus Ordo Mundi,” near the base of the painting.
The defacers entered the campus through the Stoner Gate late at night, and Vice Principal Ali Galedary, upon being notified of the defacement Wednesday morning, called the LAUSD who promptly came to completely white-wash the wall.
The tagged words, “Novus Ordo Mundi,” translates to “New Order of the World,” which may pertain to politics, with the term indicating a dramatic change in world political thought, or to a conspiracy theory relating to a secret elite which is conspiring to rule the world.
Talk has erroneously indicated that the Latin phrase appears on the one-dollar bill, whereas the term, “Novus Ordo Seclorum,” meaning New Order of the Ages, actually appears on the bill. However, all talk about the intent is speculation, as the search for suspects continues.
The LAPD is unable to disclose any information about the suspects, only that the act is a felony hate crime.
Nonetheless, the consensus from administration and staff indicates that the vandals were most likely not Uni students.
History teacher Kyle Laughlin, who was responsible for the original painting of the mural, expresses sorrow at the event, but plans on raising funds to repaint it exactly as it was, “Only bigger,” he adds.
The original mural was commissioned by the graduating class of 2009, intended as a non-political remark on what they considered the greatest event of the year.
Over a thousand dollars still needs to be raised, but the painter responsible for the new anti-smoking mural may begin work as early as this week. The money will primarily come from donations.
Measures to prevent further vandalism include the coating of the replacement mural with a vandalism-proof gloss and the potential extension of security cameras to the area around the mural.
Though initially angry and upset, Laughlin proclaimed, “The fighter [in me] came out,” optimistically adding, “They can’t paint over change; they can’t paint over the dream.”