The BANNED & RECOVERED Online Exhibit
"Patriot or Traitor?" by artist Mary V. Marsh. Referenced work: USA Patriot Act. Medium: Mixed media.
Artist statement: Library checkout cards with signatures of past readers are spied through peepholes in a book that cannot be opened. Readers’ habits under surveillance refer to the United States Patriot Act, through which personal records can be searched without warrant. Old book covers suggest the nostalgia of history and lessons about patriots as American heroes defending liberty. The Patriot Act, enacted through fear, expanded the ability of the government to spy on its own citizens, bringing up echoes of the McCarthy era in its questioning of who is a terrorist. The sense of the word patriot has been twisted in the Orwellian title, “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism.” The original American patriots were considered traitors and risked hanging to fight for liberty. Are you now, or have you ever been, a patriot?
"Patriot or Traitor?" by artist Mary V. Marsh. Referenced work: USA Patriot Act. Medium: Mixed media.
Artist statement: Library checkout cards with signatures of past readers are spied through peepholes in a book that cannot be opened. Readers’ habits under surveillance refer to the United States Patriot Act, through which personal records can be searched without warrant. Old book covers suggest the nostalgia of history and lessons about patriots as American heroes defending liberty. The Patriot Act, enacted through fear, expanded the ability of the government to spy on its own citizens, bringing up echoes of the McCarthy era in its questioning of who is a terrorist. The sense of the word patriot has been twisted in the Orwellian title, “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism.” The original American patriots were considered traitors and risked hanging to fight for liberty. Are you now, or have you ever been, a patriot?