Town Hall – Can Art Survive in the Shadow of Censorship?
Tuesday, September 29 - networking at 6:30 pm, open forum starts at 7:00pm ET
Polaris North Studio, 245 W. 29th Street, 4th floor, NYC
Our return to our live monthly panels/discussions, with a simultaneous streaming for our friends outside of New York City.
When registering, please note there are options to buy either a live or a virtual ticket.
Co-hosted by Cheryl L. Davis, vice-president and co-founder of TRU, general counsel for The Authors Guild and Emmy-nominated TV soap writer (Beyond the Gates); Jessie Fahay, founder and artistic director of Ripple Effects Artists; Jaye Hunt, dramaturg, literary manager of Parity Productions; Elizabeth Larison, Director of Arts and Culture Advocacy at the National Coalition Against Censorship. Moderated by TRU executive director Bob Ost.
TRU conversations continue about issues of current cultural significance as we move from discrimination against specific cultural groups to the broader topic of censorship. Stephen Colbert was canceled. Under pressure from the FCC Chairman, Disney suspended Jimmy Kimmel's nightly show. The NEA was pressured to limit or eliminate funding to organizations that applied for support for programs that focus on amplifying Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. Our administration has clashed with major news outlets and tried to limit press access for reporters who are critical of policy. A Trump Executive Order declared that sexual identity is exclusively determined by birth, effectively nullifying the spectrum of human identity we have grown to accept and understand. A woman's rights to sexual autonomy has already been uprooted, and gay marriage seems next on the hit list. YouTube limits the reach of any TRU interviews that contain anything their bot considers political or controversial, and social media feeds a new norm of cancel culture, shaming people for their opinions and removing certain topics from discussion.
What are the ramifications for artists? Are there effective ways for us to keep making art, and retain our artistic integrity and our lives as we know them? We'll be looking at all this a few days before Banned Books Week. Yes, books are being pulled off library shelves. Is it possible for us to fight back against these attacks on the First Amendment — and if so, how?
All attendees are welcome to participate in this conversation. Doors open at 6:30pm for networking and roundtable introductions of everyone in the room – come prepared with your best 20-second summary of who you are, and what you need. The Open Forum will start at 7:00pm. Free for members of TRU, Polaris North and Parity Productions;
$15 for non-members (with a $5 ticket option available to anyone who needs it). Please use the bright red reservation box here on our web page, or email or phone at least a day in advance (or much sooner): e-mail
TRUStaff1@gmail.com
