We, the faculty, staff, and graduate students in the Department of Art and Art History in the College of Fine Arts, strongly oppose the presence of guns in classrooms, laboratories, offices, and social spaces on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin.
Many departments can argue for exclusion from Campus Carry SB11 (and we teach in small groups and in large lecture halls, in darkened rooms and laboratories), but as concerned as we are for our own safety and that of our students, we are more concerned about how this law undermines the very basis of what we teach. As professionals engaged with the visual arts, we teach that objects are not neutral, in terms of either value or significance. We educate our students to recognize the embodiment of relationships of authority and power in objects and images. Moreover, cultural and social contexts shape meaning and power relationships between individuals; guns in classrooms, laboratories, or offices signify differently from guns in wartime, police work, or at ranges, and they perpetuate the power dynamics at play in those spheres.
We stand in solidarity with groups on our campus who areaffected disproportionately by violence, including communities of color, women, individuals living with disabilities and members of the LGBTQIA community.
Kasie Alt, graduate student
Katie Anania, graduate student
Amy Angell, graduate student
Bernadette M. Ashman, staff
Nicole Awai, faculty
Christina Bain, faculty
Francesca Balboni, graduate student
Jose Barroso, staff
Jessamine Batario, graduate student
Dorota Biczel, graduate student
Janet Bizzell, staff
Paul E. Bolin, faculty
Taylor Bradley,graduate student
Troy D. Brauntuch, faculty
Margaret Bridges, graduate student
Stacy Brodie, staff
Laura Brown, graduate student
Jason Buchanan, faculty
Sarah A. Canright, faculty
Kara Carmack, graduate student
Kate Catterall, faculty
Sarah Celentano, graduate student
Edward Chambers, faculty
Lee R. Chesney, faculty
Allison Clarke,graduate student
John R. Clarke, faculty
Jesse Cline, graduate student
Anna Colette, faculty
Anthony B. Creeden,graduate student
Adam Crosson, graduate student
Douglas Cushing, graduate student
Kirsten Cutts, graduate student
Penelope J. E. Davies, faculty
Rebecca Dearlove,graduate student
Julia Detchon, graduate student
Caitlin DiMartino, graduate student
Jessi DiTillio, graduate student
Clare C. Donnelly,graduate student
Thomas Edwards, graduate student
Katrina Erni, graduate student
Ariel Evans, graduate student
George Flaherty, faculty
Jason Goldstein,graduate student
Carma Gorman, faculty
Kate Green, graduate student
Julia E. Guernsey, faculty
Hillary Haines, staff
Caitlin Halloran,graduate student
Leah Hansard, graduate student
Lauren Hanson, graduate student
Amy Hauft, faculty
Ryan Hawk, graduate student
Linda D. Henderson, faculty
Gilles Heno-Coe, graduate student
Joan A. Holladay, faculty
Katie Hooker, graduate student
Claire Howard, graduate student
Teresa Hubbard, faculty
Uchenna Itam, graduate student
Ann Johns, faculty
Bethany Johnson, faculty
Annie May Johnston,graduate student
Mohamad Karimifar, graduate student
Andrea Keene, staff
Allison Kim, graduate student
Jieun Beth Kim, faculty
Kathleen A. Kohl,graduate student
Jana Labrasca, graduate student
Traci D. Laird, staff
Virginia Lichty, graduate student
Haley Lightcap, graduate student
Alicia Link, graduate student
Beth Link, graduate student
Beili Liu, faculty
Elana Logsdon, staff
Michael Long, graduate student
Elliot Lopez-Finn, graduate student
Alexandra Madsen, graduate student
Rick Mansfield, staff
C.C. Marsh, graduate student
Elizabeth McClellan,graduate student
Jeannie McKetta, graduate student
R. Eric McMaster, faculty
Diana G. Mendoza, staff
Bucky Miller, graduate student
Patricia Ortega Miranda, graduate student
Michael J. Mogavero, faculty
Stephennie Mulder, faculty
Nayla K. Muntasser, staff
Jennifer Muslin, graduate student
Leslie Mutchler, faculty
Allison Myers, graduate student
Julia Neal, graduate student
Maryam Ohadi-Hamadani, graduate student
Emily O’Leary, graduate student
Papalexandrou, Athanasio, faculty
Bogdan P. K. Perzyński, faculty
Allison Porambo, graduate student
Tatiana Reinoza, graduate student
Ann M. Reynolds, faculty
Jack Risley, faculty
Gretel Rodríguez, graduate student
Leticia R. Rodriguez, graduate student
Mari Rodriguez, graduate student
Meghan Rubenstein, graduate student
Astrid Runggaldier, faculty
Rose G. Salseda, graduate student
Stephanie Sandoval, graduate student
Louis Vargas Santiago, graduate student
Margo L. Sawyer, faculty
James Scheuren, faculty
Eugenie Scrase, graduate student
Amber N. Shields, staff
Kt Shorb, staff
Ana Angelica Sibrian, graduate student
Cherise Smith, faculty
Jeffrey C. Smith, faculty
Michael Smith, faculty
Xochi Q. Solis, staff
Elizabeth Srsic, graduate student
Rachel Starbuck, graduate student
Stephanie Strauss, graduate student
David S. Stuart, faculty
Rachel M. Stuckey, graduate student
Alija Sule, graduate student
Daniel D. Sutherland, faculty
Alija Sule, graduate student
Michael L. Thomas, staff
Kelsey Tisher, graduate student
Phillip Townsend, graduate student
Jason Urban, faculty
Kim Varela, graduate student
Sebastian Vidal Valenzuela, graduate student
Louis Waldman, faculty
Jade Walker, staff
Elizabeth Welch, graduate student
Diana Witcher, graduate student
Jeff Williams, faculty
Robin Williams, graduate student
Christopher Wood,graduate student
John A. Yancey, faculty
Einav Zamir, graduate student
+1 anonymous