03.17.2011

Artists Threaten to Boycott the Guggenheim

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To add your name to this list of signatories, please visit:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/gulflabor

For more information:

http://gulflabor.wordpress.com/

March 17, 2011
To: Richard Armstrong, Director
Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation
1071 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10128
We, the undersigned, are writing to demand that the Guggenheim Foundation obtain contractual guarantees that will protect the rights of workers employed in the construction and maintenance of its new branch museum in Abu Dhabi.
Human rights violations are currently occurring on Saadiyat Island, the location of the new museum. In two extensive reports on the UAE, Human Rights Watch has documented a cycle of abuse that leaves migrant workers deeply indebted, poorly paid, and unable to defend their rights or even quit their jobs. The UAE authorities responsible for developing the island have failed to tackle the root causes of abuse: unlawful recruiting fees, broken promises of wages, and a sponsorship system that gives employers virtually unlimited power over workers.
These violations, which threaten to sully the Guggenheim’s reputation, present a serious, moral challenge to those who may be asked to work with the museum. No one should be asked to exhibit or perform in a building that has been constructed and maintained on the backs of exploited employees.
Hamra Abbas
Jumana Abboud
Adel Abidin
Dennis Adams:
Shaina Anand
Yazid Anani
Ayreen Anastas
Doug Ashford
Kader Attia
Maja Bejevic
Khaled Barakeh
Yto Barrada
Regine Basha
Shumon Basar
Ute Meta Bauer
Anthea Behm
Zarina Bhimji
Doris Bittar
Monica Bonvicini
Gregg Bordowitz
Tania Bruguera
François Bucher
Ringo Bunoan
Janet Cardiff
Mario Caro
Mel Chin
Wendy Coburn
Pablo de Ocampo
T. J. Demos
Corinne Diserens
Willie Doherty:
Sam Durant
Jimmie Durham
Koken Ergun
Annika Eriksson
Harun Farocki
Azin Feizabadi:
Andrea Fraser
Rene Gabri
Emeren Garcia
Andrea Geyer
Leyla Gediz
Miriam Ghani
Paul Graham
Avery Gordon
Catherine Grout
Hans Haacke
Joana Hadjithomas
Khaled Hafez
Tone Hansen
Shuruq Harb
Mona Hatoum
Sharon Hayes
Sandi Hilal
Christine Hill
Thomas Hirschhorn
Vlatka Horvat
Alfredo Jaar
Emily Jacir
Luis Jacob
Jakob Jakobsen
Khalil Joriege
Lamia Joriege
Amar Kanwar
Thomas Keenan
Deborah Kelly
Laleh Khorramian
Marty Kirchner
Silvia Kolbowski
Barbara Kruger
Carin Kuoni
Laura Kurgan
Eileen Legaspi-Ramirez
Lani Maestro
Chus Martines
Angela Melitopoulos
John Menick
George Bures Miller
Naeem Mohaiemen
Rabih Mroué
Matt Mullican
Huma Mulji
Antonio Muntadas
Monica Narula
Issam Nassar:
Yamini Nayar
Diana Nemiroff
Molly Nesbit
Shirin Neshat
Angel Nevarez
Tom Nicholson
Marcel Odenbach
Gina Osterloh
Trevor Paglen
Cornelia Parker
Christine Peters
Nata_a Petre_in-Bachelez
Alessandro Petti
Paul Pfeiffer
Walid Raad
Mike Rakowitz
Annie Ratti
Martha Rosler
Andrew Ross
Natascha Sadr Haghighian
Anjalika Sagar
Jayce Salloum
Rasha Salti
Katya Sander
Lina Saneh
Allan Sekula
Vivien Selbo
Stephen Sheehi
Adania Shibli
Gregory Sholette
Suha Shoman
Reid Shier
Katharina Sieverding
Carl Skelton
Ashok Sukumaran
Julia Scher
Hito Steyerl
Beth Stryker
Paolo W. Tamburella
Rirkrit Tiravanija
Valerie Tevere
Oraib Toukan
Tristan Tremeau
Gediminas Urbonas
Murtaza Vali
Fabienne Verstraeten
Krzysztof Wodiczko
Akram Zaatari
Florian Zeyfang