Voices are meant to be heard. To be silenced is a crime. Eureka has always prided itself in being inclusive and diverse. Its murals all around the city signify the empowerment of representation, expression, and uplift. No one would ever have imagined that the board would ever place a ban on murals, but to the public’s surprise, they insisted on putting restraints on the murals. On January 13, the eureka city school board meeting was held from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Few public voices spoke up about issues that need to be resolved. Many shared the common belief that the motion of the board's banning of murals was a poor decision. After the repetition of the public speaking out against the board’s motion on the murals, the board had enough. Eureka city board member, Fran Taplin spoke out and shared “there’s a misconception about the murals that it was about one particular mural-.” she stated that they actually had been discussing guidelines for the murals for a year. This is very contradicting because it was stated by a few teachers of eureka high that the murals were banned due to the board’s inability to come to a consensus on guidelines for the board. It was stated that the board even asked students for guideline ideas, yet they still did not come to a consensus due to not having a legitimate guideline. The murals were banned but it was later revealed that the board did have guidelines ready, but for some reason did not use them. This outraged many of the public. This made them question the reason for the motion. Not only that, it was revealed there was a grant for the murals. If the murals are banned, where is the grant going to then? This question remained unanswered. Fortunately, the mural ban was removed, but in the process, many voices of the public (specifically students) were silenced. The bigger issue came to arise when the board used the time for the public to speak by debating with each other about a single topic that could've been easily resolved with just a simple motion and vote. The way the board carried themselves was extremely unprofessional and both displeasing and disrespectful to the public voices who were silenced. The eureka city board is corrupt and oppressive for both silencing and oppressing the voices of these students. Many came in ready with a written speech to share the concerns that are needed to be addressed. A business owner spoke out against the board stating, “Can I just express as a community member? That it is incredibly frustrating that for you guys to decide based on time you don't have time to hear from seven of your students as well as myself as a business owner“ and “ I want it to go on record that you are choosing to not hear from Latinos, community members, students of your school.” She finally commented that it was “inappropriate”. The board replied saying it was “our policy is 20 minutes”. The business owner replied “you also spent an hour and a half debating about it. The board then told students to send them emails, but when has that ever worked? It’s only when the people come together and take action is when true change begins. A student left a remark saying “It’s not the same, we want to be heard”. An example is the sexual assault protest that many schools participated in. Eureka high was one of them. Students held signs “We will not be silenced!” and “Your voice has power!” Although sexual assault is still a big issue in Eureka. (Also a point that was not mentioned in the meeting due to the time cut.) It allowed victims of sexual assault to feel supported and empowered. The business owner who spoke out was the owner of the epitome art gallery. She and many other students walked out of the room in disbelief of the oppression and silencing they had experienced. Many walked out afterward. Many were enraged with the board. One woman even told students when they became 18 to “vote them out.” The public is furious with the board and now they are seen to be oppressors and those who silence the voices of their community.