A Seattle museum temporarily closed after employees staged a walkout in protest over sections of a “Confronting Hate Together” exhibit they claim “conflate anti-Zionism as antisemitism.”
Nearly half of the workers at Wing Luke Museum, which is dedicated to sharing the histories and cultures of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, left Wednesday, the first day the exhibit opened, and said they will not return until their demands are met.
“We love the Wing Luke Museum and are consistently honored to steward the stories of our community members, many of whom have experienced the destructive harm of white supremacy, genocide, and violence that parallels the experience of Palestinians today,” said the protesting group in a statement. “Our solidarity with Palestine should be reflected in our AA/NHPI institutions. It sets a dangerous precedent of platforming colonial, white supremacist perspectives and goes against the Museum’s mission as a community-based museum advancing racial and social equity.”
They have four demands: 1) removing language in museum publications that “attempt to frame Palestinian liberation and anti-Zionism as antisemitism”; 2) acknowledge “missing perspectives” in the exhibit; 3) Require a review by the Community Advisory Committee of any “pop-up exhibits” including the one in question; 4) “Center voices and perspectives that align with the museum’s mission & values by platforming community stories within an anti-colonial, anti-white supremacist framework.”
Rather than carry out any disciplinary action against the employees, the museum issued a statement of support.
“As an organization rooted in dialogue, we acknowledge and support the right of our staff to express their beliefs and personal truths and to this end, we are holding space for a careful and thoughtful process of listening with intent to hear multiple perspectives in pursuit of a mutual way forward.
“After closing the Museum this week to listen and earnestly engage in [dialogue] with our staff, the Museum looks forward to opening our doors at a future date so that we can continue serving our community in other needed capacities during this time," the statement continued. "Please look for updates from us.”
WLM said it will offer free admission to visit the exhibit once it reopens.
🧵Seattle museum closed after antisemitic staff boycotts Jewish-Black-Asian exhibit on racism
— Ari Hoffman (@thehoffather) May 26, 2024
The Wing Luke Museum has been closed since Wed after 26 staff members walked out in response to an exhibit on racism faced by the Jewish, black & Asian communities pic.twitter.com/tKR1yXphp7
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