The National Coalition Against Censorship continues its support of student-led protests by extending the deadline for its protest-themed film contest to May 15th. This year’s contest invites aspiring teen filmmakers to create short films on the value of protest as an instrument of social change. In the weeks leading up to the March for Our […]
Artspace Censors Nudes in Exhibition About Body Positivity
Artspace, the self-described “non-profit real estate developer for the arts,” creates affordable live-work spaces in a world where such spaces are rapidly disappearing. However, on more than one occasion, Artspace has censored works exhibited by residents on their premises. The most recent incident occurred in East Minneapolis.
NCAC Supports Student Artists in Brooklyn
Sunset Park High School in Brooklyn, NY removed a work of student art last week after complaints that its message was offensive. NCAC opposes allowing a “hecker’s veto” to chill this student’s right to free expression.
Norfolk Business Shuts Down Exhibition and Halts All Future Art Displays
After an artist was censored in Norfolk, VA, the public agency who shut down her show cancels all future art exhibitions.
Guantanamo Art: Gone for Good?
If a recent policy change is not reversed, art by Guantanamo detainees may be permanently removed from public view when John Jay College’s exhibition closes next week.
NCAC Condemns Government Policy Depriving Americans of Access to Art by Guantanamo Detainees
The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) vehemently objects to the violation of the public’s right to access art by Guantanamo detainees and thus fully participate in the political conversation around Guantanamo. The new directive also violates the human rights of the detainees under international norms and further destruction of the work would impermissibly suppress documents of historical importance.
John Sims: “Confederate Flag: A Public Hanging” at Ohio University and the Kennedy Museum of Art
Johns Sims was finally able to present his work, “Confederate Flag: A Public Hanging”, after years of forced adaptation and abridgment.
NCAC Releases Statement Criticizing Walker Art Center’s Decision to Destroy Controversial Sculpture; UPDATE: Sculpture to be Ceremonially Buried
NCAC has issued a statement signed by several national and international organizations, opposing the Walker’s decision to dismantle and destroy the controversial sculpture.
Minnesota Performing Arts Center Censors Play Over Word ‘Mulatto’ in Title; UPDATE: NCAC and DLDF Send Letter to Mayor Kautz
The play offers a perspective on the experience of growing up biracial — or “mulatto,” a dated term used to describe a person with one black and one white parent.
Minnesota High School Cancels Play After Photos Leak of Students Dressed in KKK Costumes
The decision to cancel the play was understandable, given the controversy around the photo, but was it the best decision that could have been made?
NCAC Protests the Removal of American Diversity Posters over Alleged “anti-Trump” bias
NCAC is urging a Maryland school district to allow its teachers to display a series of posters promoting diversity and inclusion in America after administrators ordered their removal over concerns of political bias.
Maryland School District Censors American Diversity Posters for ‘anti-Trump’ Bias
The posters were deemed to break the school’s policy that forbids classroom materials that attempt to sway the political opinions of students.
Black History Month Art Exhibition Removed From School Admin. Offices; UPDATE: NCAC & ACLU Urge District to Immediately Restore Exhibit
An exhibition of artworks celebrating Black History Month was removed from display in a San Jose School district building after complaints calling the works offensive.
New Report Catalogs Attacks on Artistic Freedom Around The World in 2016
The number of cases registered in 2016 more than doubled the amount registered in 2015, an increase of 119%, which translates to an extra 469 attacks.
NCAC Responds to American University Museum’s Removal of Controversial Sculpture; UPDATE: NCAC Advises AU Museum on Strategies to Avoid Future Controversy
American University Museum in Washington D.C. flubbed its approach to a controversial sculpture after it claimed it did not want the message of the sculpture to be deemed the institution’s own.
Missouri Congressman Defends Student Painting Attacked for Animal Depiction of Police; UPDATE: Without Permission, Rep. Lawmaker Removes Painting
Representative Clay has stood in support of artistic free expression in the face of criticisms that the painting contains an anti-police message.
Smithsonian Chief Who Caved to Censorship Pressure from Congress Will Retire Next Year
G. Wayne Clough is familiar to followers of NCAC as the Smithsonian Institution Secretary who unilaterally pulled a video from a National Portrait Gallery exhibition at the behest of Congressional Tea Party pressure. Clough has just announced he will resign … Continue reading →
Protests After Alaska School Censors Student Art Show
“Art is a way to speak our minds!!!” one hand-drawn sign reads. “IB Art Matters!” reads another. These signs hang on the art display boards where art, done by Palmer High School’s IB Art students, once hung. In response to recent censorship by the High School, students have made their voice heard in defense of […]
NY Art School Boxes Student Sperm Project
The recent rather heavy-handed treatment of Marc Bradley Johnson’s MFA thesis project at New York’s School of Visual Art (SVA) raises some interesting concerns—especially for an institution that aims to play a leadership role in the bio-art movement. Johnson’s project consists of a refrigerator containing 68 vials of his sperm arranged on a grid. The […]
On the Fifth Day of Censorship, the Censors Gave to Me…A Golden Chastity Key
…A Golden Chastity Key Aristophanes’ “The Birds” Catholic French Outrage A Clear Channel Dove and no art in Newark Library Joy Crane’s chastity belt sculpture was too risque for the “family-friendly” Brookings Art Council Annual Juried Art Exhibit in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The sculpture depicted a chastity belt hanging from old, rusty iron hooks […]
