Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi greets the crowd during an election camping rally in Tehran, Iran, in May 2017. File Photo by Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA-EFE
Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Some of the world's top creatives, from musicians such as Pink Floyd's Roger Waters to artists whose works have been displayed in institutions like the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, have signed an open letter in support of the people of Iran and denouncing human rights abuses in the country.
Among the dozens of big names who have signed the letter are Academy Award nominee Willem Defoe, the musician and artist Brian Eno - as well as world-class artists and photographers including Cindy Sherman, Kara Walker, Marina Abramović and Barbara Kruger.
The letter was launched by an anonymous group and comes after violent crackdowns on protests after the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died in the custody of the morality police after she was arrested for not properly wearing a hijab.
"What began as a protest against mandatory hejab and decades of systemic human rights violations has now turned into the 'Woman, Life, Liberty' movement, demanding the end of the theocratic rule by an unelected clerical system in Iran," the letter reads.
"We, artists, writers, academics, and cultural practitioners from across disciplines and various countries, support the call of our Iranian colleagues to stand in solidarity with their struggle against the repressive and despotic Islamic state in Iran."
The letter went on to state that the artists will use their influence to boycott government institutions in Iran and "prevent them from having any presence in international arenas of arts, culture, and education."
Those who signed the list included museum directors and curators with influence over some of the world's most prestigious art institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art in Paris, the Brooklyn Museum and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and the Salzburger Kunstverein organization in Austria.
The artists also vowed to "create networks of support for dissidents and those who are being targeted" by the regime in Iran.
The letter also noted that nearly 6,000 Iranian artists and scholars recently signed their own statement which "loudly declares that neither the Ministry of Education nor any other person or government institution has the slightest authority to decide the fate of our future generation."
Earlier this week, officials in Iran said they would shut down the country's morality police after the internal uprising.
However, the Iranian government on Thursday said it executed the first protester in connection with recent anti-regime demonstrations.
