Open letter to the Galway International Arts Festival from Boycott the Human Zoo Campaign

Open Letter to the Galway International Arts Festival from Boycott the Human Zoo Campaign 

14^th July 2015



John Crumlish, CEO, Paul Fahy, Artistic Director
Galway International Arts Festival
Administration Office
Black Box Theatre
1 Courthouse Square
Duke Road
Galway
Republic of Ireland


Dear Mr Crumlish and Mr Fahy

We the undersigned are writing to you regarding your inclusion of the racist installation 'Exhibit B'in the 2015 Galway International Arts Festival.

As the Boycott Human Zoo Campaign; a coalition of anti -racist, Black community organisations, arts organisations and trade unions, we want to be clear that Exhibit B is not simply a ‘controversial’ art installation; it is an installation which features racism both in its content and in the process by which it has come to be put into the public domain.

As the UK campaign group Boycott the Human Zoo and associated organisations, we engaged in extensive public consultation and dialogue with people across communities in the UK and internationally. The overriding opinion was that the performance installation ‘Exhibit B’ is racist and immensely offensive and the curator Brett Bailey's alleged ‘educational’ message is lost to the point where it is a parody of itself and manifests the racism it claims to challenge. In addition, Mr Bailey's evident lack of understanding of the subject matter, and his disconnect from the social and political climate, results in distress, anxiety, tensions and public protest as seen in the increasing global voice - which continues to increase exponentially - requesting that the work be decommissioned and removed from programming in their towns and cities globally.

The recent protest events seen in the UK, Paris, Amsterdam and Brazil are part of a global response to the constant and continued de-humanisation of Black and migrant communities across the world.  After consideration, the city of Toronto refused to allow the exhibition to take place there due to the negative impact and offence it would cause for Black communities.  It is simply not enough for the artist, commissioners and venues - all of whom are speaking from a position of white privilege and none who are qualified in determining what is and is not racist - to state ‘it is not racist’; and that their word is the final word. A consortium of experts in racism, prejudice, discrimination and inequality from across the world have on multiple occasions unpacked and explained the ideology and methodology of racism that is prevalent in the process and accompanying actions of both the artist and the commissioners and hosting venues, and why the piece and the commissioning process are both examples of how racism manifests in the 21^st Century under the framework of inherited draconian and archaic decision making that replicates and reinforces its colonial origin.

Hosting this installation and ignoring the vast surge of public opposition suggests that whereby politicians, organisations, institutions and select individuals can set the parameters of what is acceptable and accessible or not, we – the voice of the people, and particularly the voice of Black  people and communities– have no say. Our voice is being censored whilst at the same time we are being accused of censoring art for standing up to racism. Our profound understanding of racism in both ideology and methodology is dismissed. That in and of itself  is a clear example of the systemic and institutional racism that continues to manifest in current times.

Our collective voices include those that have seen the exhibition and actors who auditioned and declined involvement as well as those that have participated. The collective voice resulted in petitions in several countries including 23,000 signatures in the UK and of 20,000 in France. in the UK the organisations that make up the Boycott Human Zoo Coalition total over a million people in membership.

Over one million people around the world are saying ‘No’ to ‘Exhibit B’ including politicians, academics, activists, community leaders, artists (writer, poets, rappers, visual artists and musicians) plus ordinary people, black and white.  Each one of us see it for what it is, highly offensive, deeply insensitive and a tool to uphold the system of white supremacy and privilege that allows this work to be projected on society, while reaffirming that the attitude of white superiority and automatic entitlement is somehow acceptable and unchallengeable and takes priority over all else.

The protests against ‘Exhibit B’ in the UK successfully related the message that this piece should not have been shown in the UK and its intended run at a London venue was cancelled. Our ongoing work clarifies why this is not about ‘censorship’ - the predictable and lazy response for supporters of ‘Exhibit B’ - it is about the disconnected and uninformed process by which this piece came to be commissioned. It is not anti-art but anti-racism.

The artists and commissioners of these kinds of offensive propaganda manifestations veiled as art are stating they wish to have equality of access to appropriate or misappropriate diversity of culture and life experience, while at the same time being completely devoid of that same said culture or life experience being any part of the initiation or fundamental decision making process. The result is a juxtaposition notion that it is somehow acceptable to have discrimination and under representation in the decision making process of the very meaning of what equality is. 

To suggest, as the artist does, that the mere existence of his piece is a form of anti-racism and initiates dialogue is an arrogant and subversive appropriation of the real work that goes on to challenge racism through honest and legitimate artistic, academic and political means and methods. ‘Exhibit B’ is not part of the solution, it is part of the problem – as can be seen through the vast protests and the subsequent treatment and depiction of the protestors.  The resulting irony of the modern-day dehumanisation, demonstration and harassment directed at those speaking out cannot be ignored.

It is incredibly naive and condescending of the artist and the supporters and funders of ‘Exhibit B’ to suggest that we somehow ‘don’t get it’. Not only do we understand on a profound level which the artist would never begin to understand; we do not know the issues by association, we do not understand the topic vicariously, we do not dip in and out at times of our own choosing and we do not engage by selective appropriation. We live with covert and overt - and all the subtle nuances of racism - and live with the consequences and legacy of historical racism daily.

This piece is a propaganda vehicle for the artist as we have observed though our close inspection and observation over the past year. The inconsistencies and contradictions in the artist’s explanation, justification and narrative of his work are evident to anyone who took the time to read the articles and social media posts by Brett Bailey. The artist revealed he neither understands the subject matter with which he is using as his artistic playground, nor the results of his folly.

The extremely misleading literature contained on the artist’s website provides statistics relating to where the installation has been shown and favourable reports, it does not however refer to the overwhelmingly larger number of people that have opposed its residency in their towns, cities and countries.

It is profoundly disturbing to see the sheer level of physical force used against Black people who speak out against ‘Exhibit B’. That the army was brought in and the protesters were tear gassed and pepper sprayed for standing up and exercising their right to protest in Paris, is directly connected to a resurgence of the civil rights movement reminiscent of the 1950’s that we see across America and around the globe.

Are the civil rights activism of the past decades and centuries to be forgotten so readily? Does the Galway International Arts Festival think this crude regression is the image the Republic of Ireland and the people of Galway want to send as a message as to how it views Black and migrant people?

Is one man’s quest to insult and offend, whether inadvertently or unintentionally or otherwise, of more importance than those who live in a country, where they are now revisiting the oppression and subjugation of the past that manifests in nuanced neo-colonialism and neo-liberalism, which condescends us with; “this is good for you”, “you misunderstand”, “you are uneducated” and “we know best”? An artist who reinforces racial stereotypes and actively practises racial profiling calling the intelligent campaign of opposition to his work an “angry violent mob” and dehumanising the protesters and feeding the stereotype of Black people in mainstream media. All this despite there being peaceful protest with no record of violent incidents.

It is essential to understand that the finance and resources available to the artist, producers and commissioners of ‘Exhibit B’ create a luxury of time and opportunity by which to voice their views. This luxury of time, finance and opportunity are not afforded to those who call for its decommission. That in itself reveals the inequality at play here and the systemic construct of white privilege that frames this matter. It is by no coincidence that there was an extraordinary imbalance of available resource between the campaign initiated by an African-Caribbean-British mother from Birmingham who was incensed enough by the racism of ‘Exhibit B’ to start an online petition and The Barbican and it’s all white senior management and board of governors who nonchalantly signed-off the commission without any consultation with, or understanding of, the communities who feature within this installation, a community who would ultimately pay the price of the racist installation.

The road to equality is not through the production of ‘Exhibit B’ and art that reinforces racist stereotypes, it is in the ceasing of commissioning of such works and a change in the procedures and processes by which they come to be commissioned and access to opportunities for black artists.

It is one thing to support art and freedom of expression, but it is something entirely different to support racism and propaganda guised as ‘art’- the publicity of which only serves to benefit one individual; the artist - who will ultimately be reaping the promotional and economic benefits long after the alleged installation ‘message’ is forgotten.


It is for all these reasons that we call on Galway International Arts Festival to decommission 'Exhibit B' from its program. 

As you have programmed 'Exhibit B' as part of your Galway International Arts Festival, we kindly request that you furnish us with all the details of your consultation process and those you engaged with - particularly from Black communities - in order to obtain your decision to proceed with this commission. It is of significance  that Galway International Arts Festival receives 28% of finances from public sector grants - which brings with it further requirement for transparency and responsibility.

There is a real opportunity for art institutions and politicians, who themselves are significantly lacking in diversity, to understand how we stop the cycle of inequality, division and discrimination and work together on the solution. The decommissioning of ‘Exhibit B’ is a start.

Yours Sincerely,

Sara Myers, Founder of Boycott the Human Zoo

Zita Holbourne, National Co-Chair Black Activists Rising Against Cuts (BARAC) UK & PCS Union NEC, Poet, Visual Artist & Curator

Lee Jasper, National Co-Chair BARAC UK  & Movement Against Xenophobia Steering Group
John Mullen, Collectif contre Exhibit B, France
Marcos Ferreira, Contra Exhibit B, Brasil

Donna Guthrie, BARAC Women's Officer & UCU staff Unite Branch Executive Committee

Paul Richards, Creative and Educational Director of BrazenBunch & UpRise

Rosemary C Adaser, Founder Member, Mixed Race Irish
Sharon Murphy, Black Irish & Singer, Songwriter 
Ngoma Bishop, Author, Arts Campaigner, & Chief Officer of BEMA
Austin Harney, Chair Campaign for the Rights for the Irish Communities (CRAIC) & SERTUC Race Relations Committee Secretary
Zena Edwards, Spoken Word Artist & Creative and Educational Director
Adrienne Frye, British Black List 

http://boycotthumanzoouk.com/

PRESS RELEASE: HUMAN ZOO BARBICAN CONTROVERSY COMES TO LIVERPOOL

BLACK ACTIVISTS RISING AGAINST CUTS (BARAC) UK PRESS RELEASE

 Human Zoo Barbican controversy comes to Liverpool

 

Black Activists Rising Against Cuts (BARAC) UK has teamed up with the International Slavery Museum, PCS union and MCARF (Merseyside Coalition against Racism and Fascism) to reopen the debate that arose in London around the Barbican’s Human Zoo exhibition & institutional racism in the arts & culture sectors . The debate is taking place in the International Slavery Museum, Albert Dock on Monday 27 October at 5.30pm and is part of the museum's Black History Month programme.

The Barbican exhibition, in which white South African artist Brett Bailey, featured live black performers shackled and in cages charged visitors £20 to enter. Despite claiming to be a piece of art challenging prejudice and racism, the work created a huge controversy in the art world and black and anti-racist campaign groups including BARAC UK objected to the exhibition and their campaign forced the Barbican to cancel the show. The controversy generated debates around institutional racism, the role of art and the meaning of art censorship.

Zita Holbourne, national co-chair of BARAC and a member of the PCS National Executive Committee, will be one of the speakers as a leading campaigner against the exhibition. She says: “The protest that led to the cancellation of the Barbican’s Human Zoo exhibition was not anti-art – it was anti-racist. It is not black communities that censor art, rather arts institutions  that censor black artists. As an artist I am passionate about art, but I don't believe that the rights of a piece of art should be placed above the rights of people to equality, humanity & dignity ”.
The debate will be chaired by Dr Richard Benjamin, the Director of the International Slavery Museum, and will be joined by councillor Anna Rothery and Professor David Peimer, author and professor at Edge Hill University. Dr Benjamin says: “For me there is nothing more important than the culture sector being subject to such scrutiny. The International Slavery Museum has a very clear ethos, we are a campaigning museum and as such use the museum and its content to challenge views/actions/ideologies that persist today.”
PCS union has been at the forefront of highlighting how budget cuts are impacting on local communities and workplaces, including the museums themselves. Clara Paillard, President of the PCS Culture Sector and union rep at the Liverpool museums said:  “At a time when black communities are disproportionately impacted by job cuts and huge cuts are being made to arts funding it is becoming harder for black artists to find work and showcase their talents. Institutional racism means that black people are the first affected by local cuts in arts &culture budgets”.

Please call 0151 478 4062 to reserve your free place.

Contact: Zita Holbourne, Co-Chair BARAC

Email: barac.info@gmail.com

PRESS RELEASE: BOYCOTT THE HUMAN ZOO - ONE MILLION RISING

BLACK ACTIVISTS RISING AGAINST CUTS (BARAC) UK

PRESS RELEASE

17 September 2014

Boycott the Human Zoo; 1 Million Rising

From Tuesday 23^rd of September to Saturday 27^th of September a picket will take place each day, between the hours of 5.30pm to 10pm at The Vaults, to coincide with showings of Exhibit B, Third World Bun Fight, by Brett Bailey, which is hosted by The Barbican.  Protestors will assemble at the main entrance to Waterloo Rail Station, SE1 8SW.

BARAC UK is one of several organisations forming the campaign boycotting the exhibition and BARAC representatives and members will be participating in the protests at The Vaults.

Zita Holbourne, National Co-Chair BARAC UK said;

“You don’t tackle the legacy of racism or current racism by re-enacting racist atrocities. Contrary to the claim by The Barbican that Exhibit B is empowering and educational, it is impossible for the descendants of racism created through colonial rule, Empire and enslavement to be empowered by seeing black people caged, chained, blacked up, tortured and murdered.  As a visual artist and curator, I create and exhibit art that both challenges racism and promotes equality. This exhibition does neither. Those of us who have a lived experience of racism do not need educating on racism. It is an absolute disgrace in our Capital city that this exhibition was agreed without consulting black communities on how it would be received and with complete disregard for the pain and anger it is causing. It is indicative of the deepening institutional racism we experience.”

Lee Jasper, National Co-Chair BARAC UK said;

“Here in London, a city that is 40% non- white, we have a strong and powerful tradition of black self- organisation and anti- racism. Brett Bailey or the Barbican could have at any time, spoken to a wide range of organisations, prior to putting on the show, in an effort to seek their views; they choose not to do so and to add insult to injury. We believe this Human Zoo to be racist in conceptualisation and presentation. It is an exercise in white privilege and power which should have been challenged when it was suggested it be hosted in London, rather than being supported by The Barbican and The City of London Corporation.  Failure to withdraw will lead not only to a boycott of Exhibit B but of The Barbican as an organisation”

Background

From 23 to 27 September, The Barbican will host Exhibit B, by Brett Bailey, at The Vaults in Waterloo.

Exhibit B is a re-enactment of the Victoria human zoo, using black people to act as exhibits subjected to racist torture and murder.  The exhibits include black ‘actors’; a woman in shackles, waiting to be raped, a man in an iron mask, people in cages, ‘blacked up’ and in plane seats being murdered. The exhibition objectifies black people in an offensive and degrading way. The Exhibition is racist and hurtful and has been met with outrage by black communities and the wider public.  A coalition of organisations including  BARAC UK, representing over 1 million members in addition to the 21,000 plus people who have signed the online petition are calling for the exhibition to be withdrawn by The Barbican who are hosting it.

An open letter to the City of London Corporation, by BARAC UK, led to a meeting with members of The Barbican Board and management on 11^th September, who refused to withdraw from hosting.  A lobby of the City of London Council took place on the same day and a March and rally outside The Barbican with speakers and performers took place on 13 September. At the meeting on the 11^th the Campaign requested a senior member to receive the petition on the 13^th which was acknowledged.  Despite at least one Board member being present at the Barbican on the day of the rally, only security staff  were made available to accept the petition.  As a result of this another protest took place on 16^th September and the petition was handed in to a Board member.  

ENDS

Contact:  Zita Holbourne,  National Co-Chair BARAC UK,                    Campaign Press Officer.                                                                                 

Email: barac.info@gmail.com         

www.blackactivistsrisingagainstcuts.blogspot.com

http://boycotthumanzoouk.com

@baracuk  @boycotthumanzoo

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/boycotthumanzoo

CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE BARBICAN'S RACIST HUMAN ZOO - I AM SOMEBODY -1 MILLION RISING

Protestors outside Guildhall

    Last week two significant protests took place in London, in opposition to the racist, offensive and horrific Human Zoo exhibition to be hosted by The Barbican. Probably for the first time ever, the City of London Corporation, owners of The Barbican, was lobbied by black community campaigners. Organisations and individuals, including BARAC UK demonstrated outside Guildhall as members of the Corporation entered to attend their regular Council meeting.  

Image by Zita Holbourne

As a result of the open letter that BARAC UK sent to the Chief Executive of the Corporation, a meeting was facilitated between campaigners and members of The Barbican Board and Management. At this meeting we informed The Barbican that we would be handing in the petition of over 20,000 signatures that Saturday and requested that a senior officer received it. This was acknowledged. 

Lobbying the City of London Corporation (with representatives of Unite the Union, BARAC UK & BEMA)

On Saturday 12th of September protesters marched to The Barbican for a rally outside before the planned petition hand in.  The organisations represented not only on the day but who have signed up to the campaign represent over a million in addition to the 20,000 plus who have signed the petition. Speeches and performers were accompanied by drummers. Children and adults carried banners with the words ' I am somebody' and 'I am not an object on them'. 

March to The Barbican

 Tafadwa ShakaRa Mbandaka  performed the opening libations, the proceedings were compered by Paul Lawrence. There were poetry performances by Akala, Zita Holbourne (Co-Chair BARAC UK) & Anthony Anaxagorou and speeches by  Sara Myers (Petition author),  Zita Holbourne, PCS & TUC Race Relations Committee, Donna Guthrie (Unite), Lee Jasper, Co-Chair BARAC UK, Kehinde Andrews, OBU, Austin Harney, CRAIC, Paul Richards, UpRise and Hilary Mohammed, Nation of Islam. People were drawn out of the Barbican and surrounding businesses by the presence and sound of the protest.

A video of the rally can be viewed here.

Lee Jasper, co-chair of BARAC speaks

 Disgracefully when it came to the point of handing in the petition, The Barbican failed to provide a senior representative to receive it, despite the discussions with them on Thursday about this and despite the fact that a senior Board member had been visible during the protest, viewing proceedings from a balcony.  Instead they sent as their representative, the Head of Security who acted with hostility. As a result, it was agreed that the petition would not be handed in that day and a subsequent event would be organised for the hand in.

Zita Holbourne, Co-Chair of BARAC performs poetry

Donna Guthrie, Unite member & BARAC Women's Officer

Brett Bailey's Human Zoo is neither art nor empowering. Yet this is what The Barbican have tried to tell us, that if we were to attend it, we would be empowered and educated.  Quite clearly those of us that have a lived experience of racism do not need educating about racism and we are certainly not going to feel empowered by a re-enactment of historic or current racism. Last week I wrote for The Voice Newspaper on this; Read here. 

image by Zita Holbourne

In fact, when we met with the  predominantly  white (just one black member) Barbican Board and Management and asked them how many of them had seen the exhibition, only one had, so it's laughable that they should try to 'educate' anti racist and black community organisations about racism through this horrendous exhibition.

The campaign continues and we will continue to call for the only positive solution to this horrific display of racism, masquerading as a creative artistic expression, a boycott on not just Exhibit B, which will be shown at The Vaults but on The Barbican itself.  Critics of our opposition have claimed that we are calling for censorship of art.  A boycott is not censorship.  The successful Boycott Campaign against apartheid in South Africa included artists, musicians and sports people amongst others.

 


Sign the petition here

MOUNTING PRESSURE ON THE BARBICAN AS THE CITY OF LONDON CORPORATION RESPONDS

 MOUNTING PRESSURE ON THE BARBICAN AS THE CITY OF LONDON CORPORATION RESPONDS TO OUR OPEN LETTER

 

Pressure is mounting on The Barbican from a growing number of organisations and individuals outraged by the arts venue's decision to host the offensive Exhibit B, designed by white South African, Brett Bailey. Over 15,000 people have signed an online petition calling on the Barbican to withdraw from hosting the exhibition. 

A coalition of organisations have come together to campaign against the exhibition together with the petition author, Sara Myers. This includes BARAC UK, OBV, BEMA, UpRise, Unite the Union, PCS union, NUS Black Students Campaign, OBU, Legali, DLA & YEMANJA & BEF. 

On 2nd September, as The Barbican had failed to respond to our second letter to them,  BARAC sent an open letter to the City of London Corporation, which owns The Barbican.

On 4 September we received the following response from The City Corporation Chief Executive:

Dear Ms Holbourne

Firstly, let me assure you that your concerns in relation to the presentation by the Barbican Centre of Exhibit B are taken seriously. The City Corporation, and in turn the Barbican Centre Board, recognise the strength of feeling in relation to Exhibit B. It tackles controversial and sensitive issues and has rightly initiated intense debate.  

There is no  mechanism for the public to directly address the Court of Common Council. Given the timing of the Court of Common Council meeting, and that the next meeting of the Barbican Centre Board takes place after Exhibit B, and the strength of feeling on this issue, we would be able to arrange a meeting between you and representatives from the Barbican Centre Board and management to discuss the issues raised by Exhibit B in advance of 23 September.  

Yours sincerely,

John Barradell 

 We have written back to Mr Barradell setting out the terms of any meeting to take place. 


 

If We Stand for Nothing, We Fall for Anything, by Zita Holbourne

We invite you to join us at two protests next week as follows: 

We plan to lobby  the City of London Corporation Court of Common Council taking place on Thursday 11 Sept at 1pm, assembling 12.15pm. The address is: Great Hall, Guildhall Yard, London, EC2V 5. Join the Facebook event for details and updates. 

On Saturday 13th of Sept we will be staging an event at The Barbican to hand in the petition, assembling at 1pm.  The address is: The Barbican Exhibition Centre, London, EC1Y0. Join the Facebook event for details and updates.

If UK arts institutions wish to explore the histories of black people, they need to understand and acknowledge that our story did not begin with enslavement, colonial rule, apartheid and segregation.  They need to understand that the atrocities that were inflicted on us are not us. They must acknowledge that the objectification of us during periods of history cannot be addressed by repeating this objectification and labelling it art. Contrary to The Barbican's claim that doing this is empowering, it is in fact about power and privilege. It devalues and undermines our worth in a degrading way. Our lives, histories, struggles and successes cannot be understood by the recreating of a human zoo. 

  As an artist and curator, I create and promote art that challenges racism but also promotes equality. I am the curator of the Roots, Culture, Identity Art Exhibition
which is currently on tour and showcases the art of young black artists.

From the collection 'Still Rising, Still Shining' by Zita Holbourne

 Here is an extract of the Press Release for the exhibition which will be hosted by the Public and Commercial Services later this month: 

 Zita Holbourne, curator, artist and an elected member of the TUC Race Relations Committee said; ‘Following the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence, the TUC set up a Task Group to examine institutional racism and one of the agreed actions was to make the Marble Hall at Congress House available to showcase the talents of young Black people. I am delighted to be curating this exhibition and that the Race Relations Commmitee is giving an opportunity to young Black artists to share their talents with a wider audience. Young black people are impacted negatively and disproportionately on multiple grounds by austerity, both in the labour market and by cuts to arts funding. It’s important to nurture the extraordinary talent that exists in our communities, now more than ever.  Such talent and the important messages and ideas about the world we live communicated through art, need to be shared, understood and celebrated.’

Rise Up Against Racism, by Zita Holbourne

 
Brett Bailey's exhibition does nothing to address the institutional racism, amplified by austerity that black people face today in the UK or to celebrate our achievements throughout history or today. 


Zita Holbourne, Campaign Press Officer, 
National Co-Chair BARAC UK.  



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