http://www.ashleyb.org/archives/000414.html

Our Lady (is banned?)

I knew nothing of Alma Lopez until I read this post earlier today. Knew nothing of this image and how it caused controversy back in 2001 when it went on show in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Then I'm plunged into a pretty bleak present, when I come across this, which states that "the Fullerton Museum Center at Fullerton, California... will not be exhibiting the highly sacrilegious image" in an exhibition this August (2004). I try checking out the Museum's website for more info, but their server is down as I write.

Now, beyond my penchant for the intersection between the sacred and the profane in Catholic iconography and my belief in freedom of expression, if something is sacred that is a Catholic woman's right to explore the weight and meaning of the Madonna on her life and culture.

Now, the facts currently at my disposal are not enough to judge the reasoning behind the alleged removal of the image from the museum's upcoming "The Virgin of Guadalupe: Interpreting Devotion" exhibition. But if this is due to fundamentalist pressure, then counter-pressure is needed.

August 05, 2004 | 03:48 PM