Artist Nan Goldin Was Arrested Outside of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Office While Protesting His Opioid Policies

Artist Nan Goldin was arrested today for disorderly conduct
while protesting outside of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office
building in Manhattan along with a dozen other activist members of
P.A.I.N., the group Goldin founded to hold the Sackler family
accountable for its role in the opioid crisis.

The protest today was targeted at Cuomo, who the activists
allege has not done enough to stem the flow of overdose deaths
related to opioid and prescription drug addiction. The protesters
carried signs reading “Governor, while you wait New Yorkers die”
and chanting “Cuomo lies, people die!” while sitting with arms
linked in front of the glass skyscraper, reports Alex Greenberger
of ARTnews. Activists were made when protesters
blocked the building’s entrances.

The protesters came out a day after Senator Gustavo Rivera of
New York and other public health officials spoke on WNYC’s “Brian Lehrer Show” to discuss
new Democrat-led initiatives to combat overdoses by introducing
“safe injection sites” and other potentially lifesaving solutions,
which P.A.I.N. supports. The actions also come on the heels of
news that the Sacklers have reportedly offered up to $12 billion in
settlement fees.

The protest was organized by Housing Works along with VOCAL-NY
and the Harm Reduction Coalition, and was aimed at the governor,
who they say claims “he’s progressive, but really his policies and
funding for the overdose crisis is regressive,” activist Jasmine
Budnella told Patch. She added that “we’re losing
thousands of people a year—year after year the governor continues
to under-fund this crisis and continues to block lifesaving
interventions like overdose prevention centers.”

Over the past year, Goldin, who has been addicted to opioids
herself, and P.A.I.N. have traveled around the US and Europe staging “die-ins” and
other protests at art institutions that have received Sackler
funding.

Earlier this year, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American
Museum of Natural History, the Tate, and the National Portrait
Gallery all pledged to reject further funding from the
Sackler family. The Louvre removed all traces of the Sackler name
from its buildings, while the Sackler Trust formally halted its philanthropic giving.

The post Artist Nan Goldin Was Arrested Outside of New York
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Office While Protesting His Opioid
Policies appeared first on artnet News.