Humanist Transhumanist - Is it Racist to Critique Religion?

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Is it Racist to Critique Religion?
Humanist Transhumanist the exhibition was declared racist by Guildford Lane Gallery Director Robert Cripps for doing so.

This 2009 show-case exhibition of artworks with accompanying Catalogue - Manifesto produced by myself and Demetrios Vakras was intended to take advantage of a Dali Exhibition held at the same time at the National Gallery of Victoria. Our further intention was to counter the 'modern' surreal-lite interpretation and presentation of surrealism. With such a focus upon Surrealism in our home city it represented a one time opportunity to take advantage of enthusiasm for the genre and generate further interest in living, local artists of the surreal and fantastic.

Months in planning, countless hours at the easel and computer producing the works, publication and promotional material all culminated in high costs financially and it all come to naught.

Our presentation and execution was characteristically professional, on time, content rich and efficiently delivered for viewing.

Robert Cripps, the Director of Guildford Lane Gallery created a scene towards the end of the opening night event, publicly declaring us and our exhibition racist and demanded we leave his gallery. We had another encounter like this when we returned to attempt to properly document our show and examine the posting of disclaimer notices throughout and leading into our exhibition. He rushed towards us  demanding we leave, yelling at us the exhibition was racist and that Demetrios intimidated him (this was new). We offered to remove it for a refund and re-stated our right to attend our show in the hired space during gallery hours and according to the contractual agreement. I attempted to ascertain from him what was racist whilst Demetrios backed away (to avoid appearing "intimidating"). Turns out any critical reference to the religion of Islam was the racist part though he brandished the full show incomprehensible and vaguely with a sweep of his arm all of it racist. He had fixated though on the criticism of Islam from what we could ascertain. Other religions were similarly critiqued within the content and context of the show but this was not racist, this was okay because, according to him, those religions deserve it. So it is okay to critique Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and Zoastrianism.

[We left, hounded by him to do so, or he'd call the police.
As the gallery contract instructs if disputes arise the dispute must be raised, communicated and a process followed to produce a mutually agreed resolution. We had attempted to raise our objections in person, this failed so we outlined our objections to his behaviour towards us and to his continual public misrepresentation of our art and character by email. He skirted around our complaints in a reply email, which appears to be drafted by someone else, making the further written claim that both he and his staff were uncomfortable in our presence and that we were to only attend the gallery when he was there and to always make prior arrangement to do so. This libel by him and a further unilateral change to the contract affected our accessing our own exhibition. We could only have attended again if together, not as individuals, as we could not trust what he might do, or might claim we did do, if we each went in alone. We had to forewarn the gallery as he would have to be there whilst we were. Which made us attending at all untenable.]

Our exhibition was from that point on abandoned, unmanaged, misrepresented by his posted disclaimers and his public declarations it was racist. For all we know potentially an ongoing slander of us was conducted in our absence. Not one of his volunteers or staff came forward to correct what he claimed, that he and they were all intimidated and made "uncomfortable" by our art and presence. We gave them opportunity to do so and the opportunity to do so remains available to them. Since none yet have had anything to say we have to assume therefore they were/are in agreement with Cripps claims made on their behalf. 

[For writing about our experience we are being sued and chased around the internet in his attempts to use whatever means and legal threats he can to have us hound us off the WWW. The truth may hurt but it remains what it is - some prefer to be defined by the truth whilst others prefer to suppress or ignore it because of what it can expose in us.]

So where has this "populist"and in some cases media supported moratorium on any criticism of Islam come from? It does seem to be the case that generally you are accepted to be a racist if you critique Islam.

Australia, purportedly, is a secular democracy as enshrined within The Australian Constitution Act (Chapter V. The States. 116.) Australia can be popularly defined in a number of other ways in addition, which have little to do with politics or religion; beer, sport and beach themes come immediately to mind. Australians (some or most?) like to foster this image and take pride in being considered as characteristically laid-back and even laconic. Citizens may openly critique the government and social systems which includes religions but the permission to do so is awarded conditionally. Laws regarding complaint or dissent limit our ability to publicly complain without fear of litigation, legal persecution and authoritarian intervention. In our adventures with Mr Cripps we've suffered all three in various forms and ultimately for exercising our right to critique all religions which includes Islam. When viewed with a critical eye this not only exposes the sensitivities of Islam to criticism of it but how successfully it has been transmitted that Islam is exempted. As those who do critique it are all labelled racist. That there are serious contradictions in this logic are obvious. Obvious or not it remains the case a tipping point has been reached with regard to public opinion on this matter. If you speak to anyone regarding a criticism of Islam they will clam up, prefer not to discuss it, become faintly horrified or outright state "isn't that racist?" or something to that effect. Why is it racist? The conclusion by many, that it is somehow racist, is not one arrived at by reason but more by absorption. It is a repetitiously received and accepted absorption through the media, through political and religious commentary and opinion, through popular commentators, through a desire to counter negative attitudes (fair or unfair ones), all coloured and shadowed by the not so vague sense of it all being a taboo subject.

Publicly others have already suffered the racism charge and other worse stigma, they are accused of having far-right political leanings and a racist agenda and/or have suffered in some cases much worse persecutions.

In a press-release by Maryam Namazi who opened the 2011 One Law For All's "Passion for Freedom" exhibition she mentions us amongst other artist and free thinkers fighting a much harder battle than we could ever imagine. We hold these people in high esteem and send them our respectful support. They are surviving much worse treatment than we are.

http://www.onelawforall.org.uk/passion-for-freedom-breaking-the-last-taboo-and-sharia-and-children-act/

As a citizen of a free secular democracy I am compelled to offer more than a laconic, laid-back acceptance of what prevails on popular winds. Tolerance does not require we decline to critique a human rights abuse or systemic failing because it emanates from a particular religion, religious practice, culture or politic. It does follow that we as citizens and artists must continue to defend human rights even when we are in trouble for doing so and are persecuted for it.