החזרת פרס שנשלל מהמחזאית קריל צ׳רצ׳יל

המחזאית האנגליה קריל צ׳רצ׳יל זכתה בפרס הדרמה האירופאית לשנת 2022 מטעם תיאטרון שטוטגארט. בעקבות לחץ מגורמים שונים החליטה ועדת הפרס לשלול ממנה את הפרס בנימוק שכתיבתה נגד פעילות ישראל בעזה - במיוחד ב״ עופרת יצוקה ״ היא אנטישמית. לא יעלה על הדעת שביקורת על מדיניות ישראל ומאבק בכיבוש באמצעי לא אלים שנקרא אמנות יושתקו בנימוקים מופרכים כאלה. ננסה לגייס חתימות של אנשי תיאטרון בארץ ולשלוח אותן לועדת הפרס בגרמניה. הנה לשון המכתב. 

ToJulia SchubartSpokeswoman of Schauspiel Stuttgart (Stuttgart Theatre Company) [email protected]

We, a number of Israel theatre people and members of the public, wish to protest against the withdrawal of the European Drama award to Caryl Churchill, based on the absurd and utterly false claim that her play SEVEN JEWISH CHILDREN has Anti-Semitic elements. The play is highly critical of Israeli policies and abusive crimes in Gaza and the West Bank, a stance that is absolutely justifiable and can be called humanistic, moral and angry as it should be

. It is, as its title suggests, written with great compassion for the children, the victims of the heinous crimes of adults who condemn them to a life of terror and fright and to horrible death

.There is not one trace of Anti-Semitism in it, and nothing that we, as Israeli Jews, can object to on this level., The playwright attacks Israeli policies and its violations of international law. What does that have to do with Anti-Semitism?

Labelling any criticism of Israel as Anti-Semitic is creating a smoke-screen behind which Israel can go on doing whatever it wishes to do without letting any opposing voices be heard. If the abnormal situation of the occupation is to be fought against, isn't the non-violent way of art one of the most legitimate, dignified and important means of action? How come we praise Brecht and Russian dissidents for their writings against evil , and condemn Churchill's for hers?

The play draws a wide arch starting from East European pogroms, through the immigration of Jews to Palestine (described in the past fraudulently as "a land without people to a people without land") to the rogue occupation of lands and the mistreatment of the occupied populations, and ending in Israeli bombings and the killing of innocents. All this is not in the very least Anti-Semitic. It is a political position that we the undersigns can subscribe to and identify with. Especially now, when Israel is turning into a much darker nationalistic path, we who are worried about these ominous tendencies, feel compelled to say: Don't rescind the award from Caryl Churchill. Classifying her play as hate-talk is missing the point completely. Let Caryl Churchill get the award she was named as recipient of, for her bulk of work and for her clear voice against injustice.