Contributions Fund Another Month’s Rent For Montana Bison Billboard

Bozeman artist Steve Kelly said Tuesday contributions from across the country have allowed him to extend rental of a downtown billboard space for his controversial portrayal of Montana’s slaughter of Yellowstone National Park bison.

The billboard along Last Chance Gulch created a flap earlier this month when Chamber of Commerce official Ernie Nunn told Kelly the billboard was not appreciated and “we want it out of our community.”

Nunn said the billboard was offensive, reflected adversely on Helena, the state of Montana and Montana residents and was bad for the tourism business.

His comments stirred debate over censorship and First Amendment rights.

Contacted Tuesday night, Nunn said, “I don’t know anything” about contributions to the artist or the environmental group he represents, Friends of the Wild Swan, and declined further comment.

Bruce Whittenberg, chairman of the Helena Area Chamber of Commerce, said, “I really don’t have anything to say. … This isn’t a story the Chamber of Commerce is going to stay active in.”

“Grown in Yellowstone … Slaughtered in Montana,” says the overline above a picture of a stark landscape dotted with the carcasses of dead bison lying in pools of their own blood. The gory picture refers to the slaughter of more than 1,100 Yellowstone bison over the past winter by the Department of Livestock and other state agencies, with assistance from the National Park Service.

The state contends Yellowstone bison infected with brucellosis represent a direct threat to Montana’s livestock industry.

Bison moving into Montana were either shot or captured.

Kelly said 21 contributions totaling $730 as of Tuesday allowed him to renegotiate the $425 monthly lease.