Tax-Funded Agencies and Offensive Art

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the meaning of the word 'offensive' and what, today, is considered to be offensive. This paper then goes on to discuss artwork in relation to 'what is offensive and what is not'.

From the Paper:

"Offensive. This is a term that is tossed around in the United States each and every day. Is Janet Jackson's nipple peeking through during the Super Bowl offensive? Are the acts of war and destruction occurring each day in Iraq and Afghanistan and shown on the nightly news offensive? Is a video game (Grand Theft Auto) that portrays gratuitous sex and the graphic slaughter of law enforcement officers and innocent citizens offensive? These are the questions that our nation all too often must try to answer. The camps in such arguments are usually polarized, with one group claiming obscenity or indecency and standing behind a cloak of morality while the other group just as staunchly holds up the First Amendment. Yet the argument becomes even less clear when the offending material, in the case of this study, artwork, is displayed in a taxpayer-supported agency or building."

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