More than 100 artists and scholars, including Emily Jacir, Hans Haacke, and Michael Rakowitz, have signed an open letter defending Dr. Sara Nadal-Melsió, the former associate director of the Whitney Museum of American Art's Independent Study Program (ISP), whose position was eliminated in June 2025. The termination followed the cancellation of a pro-Palestine performance titled "No Aesthetic Outside My Freedom: Mourning, Militancy, and Performance" by artists Fadl Fakhouri, Noel Maghathe, and Fargo Tbakhi, scheduled for May 12, 2025. The museum canceled the event after viewing a recording where a performer asked attendees who "believe in Israel in any incarnation" to leave. Nadal-Melsió had published a protest letter against the cancellation, leading to her dismissal. The open letter also demands the reopening of the ISP, which was suspended for the 2025-2026 program.
This controversy matters because it highlights tensions between institutional policies on political expression and academic/artistic freedom within a major American museum. The ISP has a storied history of engaging with political issues, and the cancellation and firing are seen by signatories as acts of suppression and "patriarchal institutional violence." The case raises broader questions about how museums navigate free speech, solidarity movements, and community safety, particularly around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and could set a precedent for how art institutions handle politically charged performances.