Met Museum to remove Sackler name, in opioid crisis fallout

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will reportedly remove the name of the Sackler family from its Sackler Wing and other exhibition spaces following the outrage over the family’s involvement in the opioid crisis.

“Our families have always strongly supported the Met, and we believe this to be in the best interest of the museum and the important mission that it serves,” the descendants of Dr. Mortimer Sackler and Dr. Raymond Sackler say in a joint statement along with the museum, according to The New York Times.

“The earliest of these gifts were made almost 50 years ago, and now we are passing the torch to others who might wish to step forward to support the museum.”

Other museums, including the Louvre in Paris, France, have already removed the Sackler name and the Met Museum has previously severed ties to the family’s funding.

The development comes three months after a settlement was reached for the Sacklers to pay $4.5 billion and dissolve Purdue Pharma, and two years after the Stamford, Connecticut-based company filed for bankruptcy under the weight of some 3,000 lawsuits from states and local governments, individuals, Native American tribes, hospitals, unions and other entities.

They accuse Purdue Pharma of fueling the crisis by aggressively pushing sales of its best-selling prescription painkiller OxyContin.