Artists accuse Whitney Museum of censorship for cancelling pro-Palestine performance

The Whitney Museum of American Art has been accused of censorship by artists Fadl Fakhouri, Noel Maghathe, and Fargo Tbakhi after canceling their performance titled *No Aesthetics Outside my Freedom: Mourning, Militancy and Performance*, scheduled for May 14 as part of the exhibition *A Grammar of Attention*. The museum cited the work's "exclusionary and inflammatory" content, referencing a prior iteration where Tbakhi called for those who believe in Israel or America to leave the audience and valorized specific acts of violence. The artists argue the cancellation is an act of anti-Palestinian censorship, while the museum claims the decision was necessary to uphold its policies. In response, Sara Nadal-Melsió, associate director of the Whitney Independent Study Program (ISP), canceled a related critical studies symposium, and the ISP cohort alleged the museum surveilled and intervened in their work.