PEN Berlin: Writers in support of Jews and freedom of creativity, against polarization
Why are cultural figures so inert or cautious, so strangely silent when it comes to expressing solidarity with Israel?
In recent months, PEN Berlin has faced the same criticism often directed at various cultural and educational institutions in Germany. Not just Germany, of course, but it has its own history, memory, and responsibility. There have been discussions about the buzzing silence on the German cultural scene.
Several members of PEN Berlin (such as publisher and historian Ernst Piper, writers Julia Frank, Anna Prizkau) left the organization to express their critical stance towards its position and lack of clear positioning.
Public speakers and PEN members, such as writer Eva Menasse and philosopher Susan Neiman, who leads the Einstein Forum in Potsdam, were accused of "contempt for Israel." Dangerous proximity to the position of the association and the well-known political campaign BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) was sought and found. The campaign calls for economic and political pressure on Israel to cease actions deemed by its organizers as violations of international law.
The head of PEN Berlin, Deniz Yücel, expressed the position quite clearly: making such statements is not the task of the PEN Club. It is not a community with a unified political position or a unanimous opinion on any other issue. Its task is to defend freedom of speech, the press, and creativity, as well as to
"support colleagues around the world who are persecuted, arrested, and tortured for exercising these freedoms".
At the congress, the association addressed a pressing issue. In his welcoming speech at the "Breaking Through Walls" congress on Saturday in the festival hall in Kreuzberg, Deniz Yücel began with, "The Berlin PEN Club rejects BDS". He promised to repeat this statement until, "inshallah," the last person understands it.
The result was a resolution that logically reproduces. It was adopted by an overwhelming majority of votes. And this still means that in some cases, the association, consisting of approximately 650 people, can arrive at quite unequivocal formulations.
This is a vivid document. It is titled "Solidarity with Jews in Germany, Israel, and Everywhere."
Resolution of PEN Berlin: Solidarity with Jews in Germany, Israel and everywhere
We, the General Assembly of PEN Berlin, stand together for the universal rights and freedom of all people. As democrats and as human beings we will not accept to be divided.
PEN Berlin dissociates itself from the position of PEN International on the terrorist attack of 7 October 2023, which in our view is not compatible with the values of PEN.
PEN International’s statement shows no empathy for the Israeli victims and finds the cause of Hamas’ actions not in its own political objectives, but in Israel’s policies. Since PEN International’s statements give the impression that it speaks for all its members instead of letting its members speak for themselves, we believe that a clarification is necessary. This comes very late, and we do apologize to all those affected, who rightly feel left alone.
PEN Berlin condemns the Islamist terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas and its allies. The attack was aimed at the state of Israel as a whole, which Hamas has declared it wants to destroy. It was aimed at Israel as a democracy. It was aimed at Israel as the state that stands for protecting Jews from persecution and extermination.
Und it was aimed at the Jews as Jews, as can be read in the Hamas charter.
Hatred of Jews was and has always been hatred of democracy, freedom, progress, tolerance and plurality. We stand on the side of Jews all over the world and thus on the side of Israel. We stand up against all anti-Semitism, be it our own, from the right, the left, the center, academia, the proletariat, Islamism, Christianity, etc.
Our concern and solidarity are with the people of Israel who have been injured, humiliated and killed by the anti-Semitic terror of Hamas, and all those who must continue to live with this threat. Israel is the state of the survivors of the Shoah and, like every state, has the right and duty to defend the lives of its citizens.
Our concern and solidarity are with the Palestinian civilians, including colleagues, who are defenselessly exposed to Israeli air and artillery attacks and are suffering and dying as a result of the current war. It is for the people in the Gaza Strip who have hardly any access to medical care, food and water. It is for the people who are suffering under the dictatorship and war strategy of the radical Islamist Hamas.
Our concern and solidarity are with the Jews in Germany who have to fear for their safety and who are exposed to anti-Semitic hostility and attacks. We stand by their side and stand up for them, their freedom and integrity.
Our concern and solidarity go out to all people who want to live in peace and freedom and who are currently increasingly exposed to racism and hostility. Although, no Muslim should have to justify the terror of Hamas, no Jew should have to justify those of the Israeli government.
PEN Berlin stands by the side of all those who hope and fight for a self-determined life in peace and freedom for all and everywhere. PEN Berlin stands for cultural diversity and is fully committed to artistic freedom and diversity of opinion. We stand for the free, fair, pluralistic, open exchange of different, even irreconcilable positions, which is the only way to live democracy. However, this freedom – like any freedom in a democracy – reaches its limits where it infringes the rights of others. There is no right to spread hatred and to call for violence.
Für die Freiheit des Wortes:
— PEN Deutschland (@PEN_Deutschland) October 21, 2023
Lesung und Gespräch mit Writers-in-Exile-Stipendiatin Ma Thida aus Myanmar und unserer Writers-in-Exile-Beauftragten Astrid Vehstedt jetzt am PEN-Stand auf der @Book_Fair #fbm23 pic.twitter.com/0JgnDVu5Ov
Another resolution is titled "Against social polarization and illiberal tendencies in the cultural sector".
It calls for adhering to a "diverse scene of art and science," allowing projects and research that may not be liked by everyone. Freedom of expression and freedom of art do not imply the right to freedom of contradiction, but there is a "categorical difference between criticism and non-acceptance."
Panel events were dedicated to literary topics ("Me, Mysefl and I: In The Hell Of Autofiction" and "Poetry as a Way of Life"), as well as social and political themes. There was a poetry slam titled "To Bot Or Not To Bot? Artificial Intelligences Versus Human Beings".
During the congress, a panel discussion took place titled "Talking On Unsteady Ground: Israel & Palestine". It was arguably one of the first attempts in recent months to bring Israelis and Palestinians together for a conversation. The panel included publisher Fadi Abdelnour, who grew up in Ramallah; Palestinian cultural scholar Sara El Bulbeisi; artist Yehudit Yinhar, born in an Israeli kibbutz; and writer Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus. Participants noted the positive aspect of having the conversation itself. However, there were discrepancies between personal positions and expectations associated with community representation. For example, Yinhar, a person with fairly left-leaning views, had her Jewish identity denied because she did not meet certain expectations. One round of discussions involved Israelis and Palestinians, while another focused on antisemitism and racism in the immigration society.
LGBTIQ* activist Sareh (Zahra Sedighi Hamedani) from Iran, whose imprisonment and death sentence were protested by the Berlin PEN, spoke in Berlin for the first time after her release.
Writer Sasha Filipenko spoke about the situation in his native Belarus. He lamented that his country is fading into oblivion.
The congress took place in a challenging and frightening time. Names of writers and journalists imprisoned worldwide, whose release is demanded by the Berlin PEN, were mentioned.
Related topics:
After facing criticism for its silence on the German cultural scene, several members of PEN Berlin, including publisher and historian Ernst Piper, writers Julia Frank, and Anna Prizkau, left the organization to express their critical stance towards its position and lack of clear positioning.
In response to the criticism, the head of PEN Berlin, Deniz Yücel, expressed the position quite clearly: the organization is not a community with a unified political position or a unanimous opinion on any other issue. Its task is to defend freedom of speech, the press, and creativity, as well as to support colleagues around the world who are persecuted, arrested, and tortured for exercising these freedoms.
