Dear Friends and Supporters of Lawrence Brose, At this years end it is a good time to thank everyone who has helped with their generous financial support and their invaluable moral support. Support comes to Lawrence in many ways, and all of it is important. We offer the noble words of supporters quoted below as a reminder of who Lawrences supporters are and what this case means to them. Please take a moment to read and reflect upon these powerful statements.
NEWS: On January 10th the Burchfield Penny Art Center in Buffalo is screening The Censorship Show: media artists respond to the federal investigation against Lawrence Brose. Part personal, part meditation on queer art, and part rumination on the nature of censorship, this compilation includes work by Laurie MacDonald from the Electron Movers, Meg Knowles and Ron Ehmke, Bill Brown, Anula Shetty and Mike Kuetemeyer, Carolee Schneemann, Barbara Hammer and Kathy High. Coordinating producers: Dorothea Braemer and Joanna Raczynska. If you are unable to attend, you can view the entire program (30 minutes) on the defense fund website: www.lawrencebroselegaldefensefund.com. As always, and now at the end of the year, we encourage financial support by sending your tax deductible donations to the National Center for Reason and Justice www.NCRJ.org/ and stipulate your donation for the Artists Fund which will directly support NCRJs advocacy for Lawrence. We cannot stress enough the importance of NCRJ which works for child-protective laws based on science, fairness, and good sense, and supports people who are falsely accused or convicted of crimes against children. NCRJ has a page specifically dedicated to Lawrences case: www.ncrj.org/lawrence-brose/, while their main address above illustrates recent extraordinary successes in advocating for people unjustly accused. Thank you for your continued support. This is a time when Lawrence requires the support of his many friends ..It is critical that Lawrence continue to aggressively fight the charges and maintain his innocence. Nils Olsen, Professor of Law and former Dean, University at Buffalo Law School Sandra Olsen, PhD, Director of the University at Buffalo Art Galleries I urge all my colleagues in the arts, and all who care about personal privacy rights, artistic freedom, and civil liberties, to support Lawrence Brose, financially and otherwise, in his own brave battle to hold out against this unmerited and relentless prosecution, which has already taken an enormous toll on him and those near and dear to him professionally, personally, and financially. Edmund Cardoni ,Executive Director Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center The charges that Mr. Brose is facing, in my opinion, are unfounded and violate freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and artistic freedom - all critical cornerstones of our society. Lawrence Brose has the complete support of the artistic community in Buffalo, who know and respect him and his work. Louis Grachos Director, Albright-Knox Art Gallery I am outraged that Buffalo, with its proud tradition of innovative, cutting edge art, a city that supports more arts organizations per capita than any other in the US and has made art and culture the foundation of its revival is now increasingly viewed elsewhere as a cultural backwater--all because of these high profile persecutions of our artists. Enough is enough. Please contribute to Lawrence's defense and send a message that we will not submit our arts to their cynical political calculus. Jonathan D, Katz, Director, Visual Studies Doctoral Program, University at Buffalo More and more exculpatory information has been made public, and it is becoming clear that Lawrence was singled out for prosecution because of his art and his status in the arts community. Lawrence has always maintained his innocence, and his substantive and procedural defenses look strong .The exoneration of an innocent man is as worthy a cause as there is, and any contribution would be gratefully received. William C. Altreuter, Partner, Altreuter Berlin; Past President, Squeaky Wheel/Buffalo Media Resources One magistrate judge has recommended dismissing the entire case, stating that here is not enough evidence. Yet the nightmare continues .Lawrence was never a threat to our community. Quite the opposite, he is a friend and tremendous asset for so many of us. He deserves our full support while he is fighting the case that will determine the rest of his life. Dorothea Braemer, Executive Director, Squeaky Wheel An impressive list of Feminist artists, writers and intellectuals have signed on to support the Lawrence Brose Defense Fund .As you can imagine Lawrence has been dragged through years of life destroying legal expenses, restrictions on his travel, unemployability and severe psychological stress as he fights a potential prison sentence on these dubious charges. Sarah Schulman, Distinguished Professor of the Humanities, City University of New York, College of Staten Island Does the concept of justice as a form of fairness only belong to the rich? I believe in the concept of innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, but Lawrence Broses case reminds me that justice often belongs to those who can afford it .These charges stack the deck against Brose and the only way for him to get justice is to be equally powerful to the Federal prosecutors, which requires extensive resources. Robert Hirsch, Director of Light Research, CEPA Executive Director (1993 1999) The continued prosecution of Buffalo-based artist Lawrence Brose is unnecessary, cruel, and completely unjustified I have seen and respected the work of Lawrence Brose for almost 30 years. I have also known, liked, and respected Lawrence as a person for every one of those years. Elizabeth Licata, Past President, Squeaky Wheel/Buffalo Media Resources For many months I have been aware of the current effort towhat else can one call it?besmirch the reputation and destroy the career of a man who is one of the artistic treasures of Western New York State .It is time to free Brose from the stress and fear of being convicted of the "crime" of being a man of integrity and morality and a powerful artist. Scott MacDonald, Professor of Film History, Hamilton College, Harvard University The struggle of filmmaker and non-profit arts leader Lawrence Brose to defend himself against allegations by the federal government on "child pornography possession" continues despite the flimsiness of the prosecutions case and the recommendation in June 2011 of United States Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy to dismiss the indictment .Now is the moment to support Lawrence Brose! Caroline Koebel, Faculty, Transart Institute (New York & Berlin) We believe that the case of Lawrence Brose is an instance of child pornography laws destroying an innocent persons life without the remotest possibility of protecting any child. Supporting him affords the NCRJ an opportunity to educate the public about the irrationality and injustice written into existing child-pornography law. National Center for Reason and Justice (NCRJ) From what Ive been able to learn, as a journalist of four decades experience I believe Brose to be the victim of a tragic miscarriage of justice. I feel so strongly about this case and the threat Broses indictment poses to civil liberties and artistic freedom, His indictment and defense have left Brose penniless, and he told this reporter his life had been shattered by this awful travesty of justice that has come crashing down on me for no reason. Today, he told me, Im being kept alive by my friends.Doug Ireland in Gay City News, November 2011 The current accusation deforms and distorts the cultural benefits Brose single-handedly brought to Buffalo. It's very important that we artists feel that we can contribute to his defense, which is in essence, a defense of our own work and process. Carolee Schneemann This nightmare false charge against Brose has deprived him of his job and life savings and deprived the public and fellow artists of his distinguished, inspiring and helpful work as an artist and administrator. As a fellow artist I strongly support Lawrence Brose. Pauline Oliveros, Professor of Practice, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute While it is clearly important for a civil society to protect minor children, it is wrong of us to prosecute artists who speak to ideas which may be challenging or even explosive, but which must be freely investigated in a free society. Many of us in the art community and in the larger society are indebted to Lawrence, his intelligence and his creativity. Sherry Miller Hocking, Assistant Director, Experimental Television Center It is truly tragic to see him attacked with the blunt, and misguided, legalistic weapon of pornography prosecution. It is also ironic, given his long interest in the plight of Oscar Wilde. Buffalos art community has already been through one misguided, destructive, and costly, prosecution of an artist (Steve Kurtz) and it is unconscionable that the judicial system there has learned nothing from this miscarriage of justice. Grant Kester, Chair, Visual Arts Department, Associate Professor, Art History, University of California, San Diego Lawrence Brose is not a criminal; he is an artist, doing what artists do best, asking difficult questions about our life and times in order to illuminate a new perspective as we struggle to move forward as a culture. Lets use the laws to protect us from evil, not persecute the voices that help us examine our demons. Jeffrey Hoone, Executive Director, Light Work, Syracuse, NY Lawrence Brose exemplifies an ethos of collegiality, generosity, intellectual rigor, and respect---in short, what is so often lacking in our institutional leadership and in our public culture writ large. As the director of one of this countrys most venerated spaces for investigative and progressive artistic inquiry, Lawrence Brose provided opportunities for critical debate and intellectual community among a diverse group of emerging artists, critics, poets, and musicians. Those of us indebted to his foresight and munificence are legion. Roberto Tejada, Distinguished Endowed Chair, Professor of Art History, Meadows School of the Arts, Southern Methodist University Warm regards and with gratitude, The Lawrence Brose Defense Fund Team www.lawrencebroselegaldefensefund.com www.ncrj.org/lawrence-brose/ _______________________________________________ FrameWorks mailing list [email protected] https://mailman-mail5.webfaction.com/listinfo/frameworks
