PEN America struggles to 'clean up mess' after staff uproar on Gaza
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Anonymously, staffers have expressed concerns "that PEN America is failing to comply with its mission and values with regard to its work on Palestinian free expression.”
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Journalist Rula Jebreal attends the Women in the World Summit opening night at the David H. Koch Theater on Thursday, April 12, 2018, in New York. (AP)
The board of the PEN America organization received a letter this week from a group of current and former employees in protest against the organization’s refusal to side with its parent organization PEN International's stance in favor of a ceasefire in Gaza, as reported by The Intercept.
The staffers sent the letter anonymously over fear of retaliation and handed the board additional letters from other employees “expressing concerns from a large number of staff that PEN America is failing to comply with its mission and values with regard to its work on Palestinian free expression.”
This comes after 41 staffers back in December raised “continued concerns about the organization’s shortcomings in mounting a principled defense of free expression" and warned that CEO Suzanne Nossel’s decision to take an “ill-conceived” trip to "Israel" undermines the organization's credibility.
A previous letter called out the organization’s first response after October 7 for ignoring and brushing off suffering inflicted upon Palestinians by "Israel".
Staffers who also rejected invitations to celebrate the international annual gathering in mid-March were the "instigators" that sent PEN America into a spiral of damage-control mode.
In response, the organization publicly called for an immediate ceasefire and the release of captives and the provision of a “substantial” financial contribution of $100,000 to the PEN Emergency Fund to distribute to Palestinian writers in need.
One PEN America spokesperson told The Intercept, “Like many other organizations, PEN America is wrestling with the challenges of responding to a complex conflict that has divided our community. From the outset, we have had countless discussions with staff at all levels of the organization on how we can best contribute in this moment."
“This is consistent with our role as a big tent organization that defends free expression and writers. Our work in defense of speech, by or in defense of Palestinians, most of which is publicly available, has been robust and extensive. Airing varied voices and reflecting complexity in our work are essential in fulfillment of PEN America’s principles and mission.”
In turn, PEN America contacted well-known Palestinians to invite them to a panel on the censorship of Palestinian voices, including journalist and analyst Rula Jebreal was one of them. Jebreal told The Intercept that she intends to hear them out but won't serve as window-dressing for their mistakes.
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“No Palestinian wants to be the token Palestinian. It’s insulting and offensive. We’re not going to clean up your mess,” Jebreal said she told the organization, adding, “You went out of your way when Ukraine was under attack and now when it comes to Palestine, it’s as if we don’t exist,” referencing the double standards in reporting.
The PEN America union this week accused the organization's management of policies disciplining staff for engaging in political activity like signing letters criticizing PEN or attending protests.
“Sweeping restrictions like these coming from a leading free-expression organization would set a very dangerous precedent for employees everywhere,” the union said, noting, “It is incredibly disappointing to see Management does not respect this internally, despite PEN’s guidance to other organizations.”
Prominent writers boycott PEN World Voices Festival over Gaza
Dozens of writers withdrew from an international literary festival as it failed to call for an end to the ongoing Israeli genocide against Gaza.
Naomi Klein, Michelle Alexander, Hisham Matar, Isabella Hammad, Maaza Mengiste, Zaina Arafat, Susan Muaddi Darraj, and other writers quit the PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature as reported by The Daily Beast on March 15, which cited a letter released two days prior.
The festival, created in 2004, takes place annually in New York City and Los Angeles and honors international writers.
"Israel has killed, and at times deliberately targeted and assassinated journalists, poets, novelists, and writers of all kinds," the letter stressed.
The letter labeled the deliberate Israeli attacks on cultural institutions in Palestine, including universities and libraries, as a form of "cultural genocide".
As the festival has not urged for a ceasefire in Gaza, the writers in protest emphasized that such neglect is a "betrayal" of its values.
"This failure is particularly striking in light of the extraordinary toll this catastrophe has taken in the cultural sphere," they stated.
