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Arnolfini Apologizes After Canceling Events for Palestinian Film Festival
The Arnolfini in Bristol, England apologized for canceling two events in their Palestine Film Festival in November 2023. The apology comes after artists in the area condemned the move as censorship and boycotted the gallery for months.
Arnolfini, in November 2023, canceled a screening of Farha (2021) and a talk between Palestinian writer Ghada Karmi and rapper/activist Lowkey. The gallery released an apology on their website on Friday, May 3, detailing their regret for this decision.
“We are sincerely sorry we [canceled] the events. It was a decision based on the information and understanding we had at the time, but now believe it was wrong,” the gallery said. “We genuinely acknowledge the significant impact of how this situation has been handled and that an apology is long overdue. We deeply regret the distress caused and [apologize] without reservation.”
The Arnolfini’s Apologies
In their apology, the gallery acknowledged the high death toll of Israel’s bombings in Gaza. They also referenced the preliminary genocide ruling of the International Court of Justice. They said that they were currently in a mediation process with the festival organizers and other stakeholders over the ban.
“Following a period of reflection and consultation, we are developing robust internal processes and assessing [organizational] structures, including a new Programming Policy that will be shared on our website once published, which we feel will best serve Arnolfini’s contributors and audiences in the future,” they said.
The canceled film, Farha (2021), is a coming-of-age story of a woman during the Nakba, the 1948 expulsion of Palestinians from their homeland. Directed by Jordanian director Darin J. Sallam and released on Netflix on December 1, 2022, the film was Jordan’s pick for Best International Feature Film for the Academy Awards in 2023.
Mass Boycotts from Artists
The cancellation of the two events came out of the gallery’s desire to be apolitical. They claimed that, as an arts charity, they were “legally obliged” to follow government doctrine to not air political discourse. They believed removing the events to be the right course of action at the time.
Many artists in the United Kingdom immediately decried the decision as censorship. Over a thousand artists signed an open letter at the time refusing to work with the gallery. The letter also pointed out that the film festival has been happening for years without any problem to its content.
“This had not been a serious concern in all the previous years that Arnolfini hosted the film festival,” the letter said. “Nor had it been a problem with the many other exhibitions and public programmes that the [center] hosted since its opening in 1961.”
“One person wrote that the purpose of art is to ‘to hold space for as many voices as possible, not to silence them. Removing events platforming Palestinian experiences IS a political move.’ Another said, ‘If you only show artists’ work that focuses on oppression when it suits you, it’s called exploitation,’” the letter continued.
Artists for Palestine UK ended their boycott of the organization after the release of Arnolfini’s apology.
“We hope this sends a clear message to other cultural institutions,” they said. “Amid a repressive political and media climate, cultural institutions are too often failing in their duty to uphold freedom of expression and to protect against discrimination.”
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Frequently Asked Questions
The Arnolfini in Bristol, England, apologized for canceling two events in its Palestine Film Festival in November 2023: a screening of Farha (2021) and a talk by writer Ghada Karmi and rapper Lowkey. The gallery said it now believes the decision was wrong.
The gallery published its apology on its website on Friday, May 3, 2024, after months of criticism. It said it was in a mediation process with festival organizers and other stakeholders and was developing internal processes, including a new Programming Policy to be shared on its website.
Many artists in the United Kingdom criticized the decision as censorship. Over a thousand artists signed an open letter refusing to work with the gallery, and Artists for Palestine UK ended its boycott after the apology, saying it hoped to send a clear message to other cultural institutions.
The gallery claimed that, as an arts charity, it was legally obliged to follow government guidance on political discourse, and believed removing the events was the right course of action then. The open letter noted the film festival had run for years without any problem over its content.
Farha (2021) is a coming-of-age film about a young woman during the Nakba, the 1948 expulsion of Palestinians from their homeland. Directed by Jordanian filmmaker Darin J. Sallam and released on Netflix on December 1, 2022, it was Jordan’s selection for Best International Feature Film at the 2023 Academy Awards.
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