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person John-Paul Stonard

newspaper The Art Newspaper article 0 articles

Comment | Museums must be the leaders in a moral revolution

Dutch historian Rutger Bregman, in his 2025 BBC Reith Lectures and book 'Moral Ambition,' argues that Europe risks becoming a stagnant, museum-like relic and calls for a moral revolution to counter societal decline driven by unserious leadership. He positions museums, with their high public trust and status as democratic civic spaces, as crucial leaders in this revolution, urging them to move beyond passive neutrality and actively establish ethical standards, combat misinformation, and engage with urgent societal issues like authoritarianism and climate crisis.