Sarah Peake, openly lesbian losing candidate for State Rep in 2004, was disturbed by a painting in her town hall in Provincetown depicting the Pilgrims landing there. This very "Selectwoman" (isn't that sexist? shouldn't it be "Selectperson"?) was so disturbed she got the painting removed.
First noted by Brian McGrory in the Boston Globe, Brit Hume also reported this story tonight on Fox News Special Report:
Sexist Painting?
A century-old painting commemorating the Pilgrims' landing in Provincetown, Massachusetts, no longer hangs in the town hall after city officials voted that it was discriminatory against women. The Boston Globe reports that town Selectwoman Sarah Peake said she found it "disturbing" that the large oil painting — depicting the Pilgrims voting on the Mayflower Compact — didn't include a single woman. Despite the fact that only male colonists actually signed the historic document, three of the four selectmen agreed to remove the painting, which had hung in the town hall for at least 60 years.
Now we recall something about this same "Selectwoman" advocating nudism on the public beaches on byways of P'town. So it figures that she just can't stand the sight of clothed male Pilgrims.
From McGrory's column:
[W]hat Peake didn't like was that the painting didn't include any women. That and the fact that the painting's only Indian -- Native American, I'd better call him -- wasn't holding a ballot like everyone else.
If you don't believe me, let's go straight to Cheryl Andrews, the chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen. She also happened to cast the only vote against the painting's removal, making her a rare voice of sanity on the board.
''There's this lovely oil painting," she said yesterday. ''The thing is huge. It's been up there since forever. It was painted by Max Bohm, who's considered quite something in local art circles.
''And Sarah Peake turns around and faces it, and it's government. They're voting. She says, 'I'd like to talk about this painting. I find this painting disturbing.' That's a quote. She said it's disturbing to her because there are no women in the painting and the only one not holding a ballot is the Native American Indian. And I thought, 'Here we go.' "
