In this topsy-turvy world, authors call for a boycott of books
I am troubled, disappointed and shocked that so many of my fellow authors wish to suppress books based on the nationality of their author.
Over 3,000 “writers, translators, illustrators and book workers” have signed a petition to boycott books printed or distributed by Israeli publishers. They also refuse to have their own works translated into Hebrew by these publishers for the Israeli market.
The petition says this is about the situation in the Middle East: “The current war has entered our homes and pierced our hearts.” Yes, mine, too. I am a novelist and columnist and still have difficulty finding the words to convey my distress.
But what makes the signatories think that a boycott will bring peace nearer? Are the signatories afraid of what Israeli authors write? Last spring David Grossman, one of Israel's preeminent novelists, wrote, “Neither side is capable of viewing the other's tragedy with a shred of understanding — not to mention compassion.” Should his opinions be squelched? Israel is a nation with a free press. Doesn't it make sense to ensure Israelis have access to all books including those telling Palestinian Arab stories and conveying all views on the Israel-Hamas War?
In trying to suppress free expression, the petition's signatories use McCarthyite tactics, embrace sloppy history, ignore terrorist violence and turn toward antisemitism.
The petition calls for a boycott of Israeli “publishers, festivals, literary agencies and publications” unless they have “publicly recognized the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people as enshrined in international law.” This is reminiscent of the loyalty oaths required during the McCarthy era of the early 1950s.
In 1950, the University of California fired faculty member Erik Erikson, the author of the classic “Childhood and Society,” for refusing to sign an oath promising he would support and defend the United States and the state of California against all enemies foreign and domestic. Texas required that textbook authors sign anti-communist oaths and ensure their writing reflected “our glowing and throbbing history of hearts and souls inspired by wonderful American principles and tradition.”
Aren't the 3,000 signatories asking for the same kind of loyalty oath, pledging to boycott publication of the works by authors who will not publicly vow to take a specific political stand?
In 1953, the American Library Association issued a “Freedom to Read” statement that said “We Americans … to make their own decisions about what they read and believe.” Charles Muscatine explained why he wouldn't sign the University of California's oath: “As a young assistant professor, I had been insisting to the kids that you stick to your guns and you tell it the way you see it and you think for yourself and you express things for yourself and I felt that I couldn't really justify teaching students if I weren't behaving the same way.”
Evidently there are over 3,000 signatories in 2024 who do not share those sentiments.
The petitioners not only wish to limit free expression, but they also put forward a shamefully one-sided view of the facts behind the Israel-Hamas War. There is not one word in the petition about the Hamas attack that started the current war on Oct. 7, 2023. Over 1,200 civilians died in the attack, including 40 Americans. The attack was found by a U.N. report to have comprised “a catalog of the most extreme and inhumane forms of killing, torture and other horrors” including “rape and gang-rape.” There is no mention either of the Hamas Covenant that calls for the elimination of the state of Israel and a jihad against “the warmongering Jews.” I could go on, but this column has a word limit.
The petition calls the war going on in the Middle East “the most profound moral, political and cultural crisis of the 21st century.” How do you measure it against the Russian invasion of Ukraine where Russia has inflicted over 57,000 military deaths, displaced 3.7 million civilians and kidnapped 20,000 children? In the last two years, Sudan's civil war has killed as many as 150,000 people with over 10 million displaced. The Department of State reports the Chinese government has detained more than 1 million Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and other Muslims in reeducation or detention centers in its western province of Xinjiang.
The fact these are going on is no reason to overlook the horrors that the Middle East war has inflicted on Israelis and Palestinian Arabs. But why a petition aimed only at the majority Jewish state of Israel and not one at Russia, Sudan or China? Could the answer be antisemitism?
In response to the petition, over 1,700 authors, critics, movie directors, screenwriters, publishers and others have signed a letter calling for “support of freedom of expression and against discriminatory boycotts.” It goes on to say, “Over the past year, planned bookstore appearances by Jewish authors have been canceled, ads for books about Israel have been rejected, book readings have been shut down, literary groups have been targeted and activists have publicized lists of 'Zionist' authors to harass.”
I myself have signed that letter along with Lee Child, whom I know and admire and whose Jack Reacher thrillers have sold over 100 million copies. Lee says this: “Politically targeting novelists, authors, and publishing houses based on their nationality is misguided. … The written word, and the dissemination of it, must always be protected, especially in times of heightened tension. And to achieve peace, we must humanize one another and build bridges across communities through the open exchange of ideas. Literature allows for that. Boycotts hinder it.”
Words to live by. Thank you, Lee.
© 2024, Creators