SF State students were given a chance to voice their opinions Dec. 7 about the first draft of a Native American mural to be painted on the Cesar Chavez Student Center on the Plaza Level of the center.

Many students were interested in knowing more about the mural.

“It’s about time. American Indians have such a long history,” international relations major Tabila Vigil, 24, said.

The Student Center Governing Board (SCGB) has been planning the mural since October 2005, and hopes it will be up in April.

“It’s the first time we had a draft,” said Hector Jimenez-Cardenas, chair of the Native American committee. He said they had waited to get feedback from SF state students.

“We want to know what SFSU thinks, what they would like to see in a mural,” he said.

The proposed mural will be painted on the outside of the student center between the eateries and the bookstore, and will be painted by Toby Linwood, an artist from Oregon with a Native American background.

The SCGB decided to paint the mural to represent more of SF State’s diversity.

“It says this is who we are,” said Aimee Barnes, who works at Richard Oaks Multicultural Center and is also on the Native American Mural Project committee.

According to Linwood’s narrative explanation of the first draft, posted next to the draft, his goal for the mural is to show an image of Native Americans not portrayed in Disney and cowboy movies.

The background of the draft was an image similar to the American flag. Linwood said the stripes are upside down, when compared to the American flag. This is to represent how America has changed. Camouflaged in the stripes is a television. The screen displayed fireworks representing an Independence Day celebration. Linwood said the fireworks are made out of bombs to show the enjoyment America has from other people’s suffering.

A Native American man and woman are also in the mural draft. The woman is carrying food, which symbolizes Native Americans moving forward, and the man has a scarf on his head to show he is headstrong.

“It is important to have,” said Chris Delbuk, 23, a senior studying design and industry. “The more people who get represented, the better.”

Barnes said more revisions will be made, and another town hall meeting to get more feedback will be held next semester.

“It lets people know it is happening,” Barnes said about the meetings, “and it creates visibility.”