Svetlana Mintcheva (Director of programs at the National Coalition Against Censorship) will discuss the following:

Private museums, galleries and publishers as well as social media platforms are, by definition, outside the realm of First Amendment law. They can censor at will. And pressures for them to do so are growing. Many of these pressures come from the liberal left, whose traditional support for free speech is wavering.  They are fueled by a rise in political discontent, which manifests as moral outrage. Social media, with their unprecedented mobilizing powers amplify and give traction to outrage campaigns. And, since the quick-gratification logic of clicktivism does not allow for depth of engagement, nuance, experimentation and ambiguity become liabilities. Which may explain the paradox that the targets of moral outrage are often on the same side politically as the outraged. Artists and writers are sometimes intimidated into pulling their own work from public view and cultural institutions are yielding to the pressure of protesters – and censoring. But they don’t need to: they can – and must - stay true the responsibility to provide an open space for difficult or controversial art while also demonstrating their recognition of the legitimacy and importance of political discontent.  This would also give artists support and, courage and conviction to avoid self-censorship.

Co-sponsored by Temple Contemporary.

The lecture is free and open to the public.