During a time when relations are sensitive between the Black community and police, Musa Bailey felt it was the perfect time to unveil a mural of 'Bad Cops vs Good Cops'.
"We felt it was important to use this, our platform to speak to some of the social problems going on right now without necessarily taking a side," Bailey said.
Bailey is co-owner and art director of Cold Crush, a bar and arts center on the corner of 27th Street and Larimer Street in Denver. The patio features a brick a wall with a large mural painted like an old fashion boxing poster depicting a 'good cop' in white battling a 'bad cop' in black.
"So, it makes it look cartoonish almost so it kinda takes the sting off of it right away," Bailey said. "We chose the colors and brightness specifically so that you feel something."
Under the 'bad cop', the mural lists attributes such as "Kills innocent civilians". Beneath the 'good cop' it lists "Respects human life".
"I'm not sure who created it, but I think it's cool to see," Jon Shockness, a passerby, said. "I think the way this is done so tastefully that it makes you think and it's more of a conversation piece."
Aren Bahr is a patron of Cold Crush. He says the art work is thought provoking.
"It's something simple, but very powerful at the same time," Bahr said. "Something to like focus on and come together and make something positive out of something extremely negative."
Deon Davis runs a food truck next door. He says people have been stopping by all day long to see and it take pictures.
"It was kind of interesting to see how just like a piece of artwork on the wall can make like such an impact," Davis said.
Bailey hopes it's not offensive to anyone, especially police officers.
"Personally, I have family on the police force," Bailey said. "The issue is bigger than just aw, there's bad cops. We know there's bad cops, but there are also some really, really good cops out there, too."
Nick Rogers, president of the Denver Police Protective Association, was traveling and could not receive images, so he could not comment on the mural.
Bailey says the whole point of the artwork is to be controversial.
"This is not just an issue with cops," Bailey said. "This is an issue in the world in general right now."
