"Art, Freedom, Democracy" Series Closed By City of Troy

from The Sanctuary for Independent Media website

An art installation closed by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute last Thursday (March 5) was shut down by the City of Troy this morning (March 11), a day after it re-opened at The Sanctuary for Independent Media.

Wafaa Bilal's "Virtual Jihadi" piece is the centerpiece of a month-long celebration of art, freedom and democracy at The Sanctuary for Independent Media, which features by Iraqi-born digital media artist Wafaa Bilal, culture jammers The Yes Men, film maker Pam Yates and the Critical Art Ensemble's Professor Steve Kurtz. The City of Troy's order to close The Sanctuary for Independent Media jeopardizes the entire "Art, Freedom, Democracy" series, which focuses on government intimidation and censorship under the guise of counter-terrorism.

The City of Troy cited code violations as the reason for their action, less than 24 hours after an inspection by code enforcement and fire officials cleared the building for use.

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