December 27, 2023

Press release: As Poetry Foundation Censors Pro-Palestine Voices, Mizna Uses Their Grant for Palestine

by Lamia Abukhadra | in Mizna News

In light of recent events in Palestine—and more specifically, the Poetry Foundation’s censorship of pro-Palestinian voices and refusal to take a public stance on the genocidal war taking place in Gaza—Mizna makes this statement regarding our financial relationship with this funder. 

Mizna was recently awarded a Poetry Foundation grant for $35,000, and the Poetry Foundation has funded Mizna since 2021. During the grant renewal process, poets Summer Farah and Omar Sakr (both Mizna authors), Noor Hindi, and Mizna Executive Editor George Abraham co-wrote a letter calling for individual poets to boycott the Poetry Foundation. The letter gained thousands of signatures and was covered by major outlets such as LitHub.

Mizna supports this boycott and encourages our community of writers to continue supporting the boycott. The Poetry Foundation has not responded to the letter’s demands, and furthermore, has attempted to undermine such protests with accusations of “misinformation.” We call on the Poetry Foundation to apologize and heed the demands of the boycott letter.

“We strongly condemn the Poetry Foundation’s choice to censor artists and disregard their calls for political clarity,” said Executive and Artistic Director of Mizna, Lana Salah Barkawi. “More than 20,000 civilians have died and nearly 2 million people have been displaced in Gaza. This is not a moment to stay silent. We want to be clear: we will use these Poetry Foundation funds to directly support Palestinians and other writers affected by rising anti-Palestinian censorship in the US.” 

Funds received from the Poetry Foundation will be used as follows: 

• Directly paying Palestinians, especially those in Gaza who are most affected by recent genocidal actions by the Israeli military.
• Continuing to publish work in print and online by Palestinians and other pro-Palestine allies who have put their livelihoods on the line to condemn the genocide in Gaza and support Palestinian liberation.
• Funding ongoing readings, installations, residencies, and other cultural programs centering Palestine.
• Continuing to support political actions for Palestinian liberation, both locally in the Twin Cities and nationally.

“Institutions like the Poetry Foundation cannot exist without poets,” said Mizna Executive Editor George Abraham. “It is unconscionable that the Poetry Foundation remains silent, especially as several poets, including Poetry’s own contributor Mosab Abu Toha, are abducted, imprisoned, or even murdered, by the Israeli state. How are artists supposed to work with an organization that doesn’t stand by its values?”

While the Poetry Foundation censors pro-Palestinian voices, Mizna will continue to support artists, writers, and filmmakers in making and presenting work that proposes political liberation and self-determination, especially in Palestine. Decolonization is not a metaphor.

For questions or further comment please contact:

Lamia Abukhadra
Art and Communications Director, Mizna
lamia@mizna.org

George Abraham
Executive Editor, Mizna
george@mizna.org