Another Reactionary Christian Trying to Censor Art

There is a woman who is suing the Baltic art gallery in Gateshead, England for exhibiting a statue of Jesus with an erection. The Guardian have sensationalised the story slightly with there choice of image which is below:

Here is the complete installation which gives a more accurate sense of the scale of the work and the fact that Christ forms one small element of it (sorry its so small).

 

Lawyers for Emily Mapfuwa, a 40-year-old Christian who was offended by the artwork, launched a private prosecution against the gallery for outraging public decency and causing harassment, alarm and distress to the public. Mapfuwa, of Brentwood, Essex, argues the Baltic would not have dared depict the prophet Muhammad in such a way.

She complained in writing to Northumbria police earlier this year, asking for an investigation, and was informed in May that there was no case to answer.

But the Christian Legal Centre - an organisation that aims to "promote and protect the biblical freedoms of Christian believers in the United Kingdom" - agreed to pay her legal costs. The CLC also funded the case brought by Stephen Green against the BBC over Jerry Springer - The Opera. A CLC spokesman said Mapfuwa believed in freedom of expression, but "this statue served no other purpose than to offend Christians and to denigrate Christ".

(She may be only suing the gallery now but she did try and have the statue removed by complaining to the police while that work was on show.)

Link to Guardian story