National Book Awards: Finalists use ceremony to call for ceasefire between Israel and Hamas after sponsors withdraw | National Book Awards

The majority of finalists for this year’s National Book Awards made a collective statement calling for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Gaza at the ceremony in New York on Thursday, amid a backstage storm as sponsors pulled out in anticipation.

Twenty of the 25 finalists in the five categories – fiction, non-fiction, poetry, children’s literature, and translated literature – took the stage as author Alia Bilal, nominated in the fiction category for her novel The Temple People, read the prepared statement.

“On behalf of the finalists, we oppose the ongoing bombardment of Gaza and call for a humanitarian ceasefire to meet the urgent humanitarian needs of Palestinian civilians, especially children,” Bilal said.

He added: “We oppose anti-Semitism, anti-Palestinian sentiment, and Islamophobia alike, accept the human dignity of all parties, and know that further bloodshed will do nothing to secure lasting peace in the region.”

On Wednesday, it was revealed that one of the sponsors had pulled out of the event after the National Book Awards informed them of the expected action.

Zibby Owens, CEO of sponsor Zibby Media, said she was “warned” that the candidates “came together as a bloc and decided to use their platform when winning speeches to promote a pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel agenda.” In an online statement She believes that the phrase “Free Palestine” “has come to mean antagonizing an entire religion, not just a place.”

A second sponsor, the book subscription service Book of the Month, told The New York Times that it will not attend the gala, but will continue to support the event.

Historian Ned Blackhawk, who won the nonfiction award for his book Rediscovering America: Indigenous Peoples and the Dismantling of U.S. History, alluded to the controversy in his speech, saying he “deeply appreciates the spirit of generosity, and the kind of work that the international community is doing.” “The collaborative support and extreme solidarity shown by all the finalists over the past two days.”

Justin Torres won the fiction category for his novel Blackouts, which The Guardian described as a “strange and glorious” novel centered around a true study of gay people in the 1930s. “Imagine that Scheherazade extracted her stories from the Kinsey report; Kiss of the Spider Woman has been re-instated in a psychiatric hospital. “The Old Testament rewritten by Tennessee Williams,” wrote reviewer PJ Silcox.

As for the youth category, author and illustrator Dan Santat won for his graphic memoir, “The First Time for Everything,” which revolves around his childhood trip to Europe that changed his life.

Craig Santos Perez, a Chamorro poet from Guam, won the poetry category for his poetry collection “From an Unincorporated Area.” [åmot].

Brazilian writer Stenio Gardel and translator Bruna Dantas Lobato won the Translated Literature category for Remaining Words, a novel about homophobia and poverty in Brazil’s hinterland.

The rise of book bans across the United States, at the behest of increasingly powerful conservative parent groups, was on the minds of many on Thursday. “Before we get started, are there any Freedom Moms in the house?” In his opening remarks, host LeVar Burton asked the audience to name the group that campaigned against the inclusion of books about racial minorities and LGBT people in school curricula. “No? Good. Then there won’t be any need to throw hands tonight,” he joked.

Oprah, who also took the stage, said: “Banning the book means extinguishing the flame of truth, what it means to be alive, what it means to engage in the world.” “Let’s let everyone choose for themselves what they want to read. This is called freedom.”

Now in its seventy-fourth year, the National Book Awards are one of the most prestigious literary awards in the United States. The award ceremony is often used as an opportunity for authors to talk about the political issues that move them, although the war between Israel and Hamas has divided the literary world in its response.

Last month, 92NY, a venue for several literary events in New York, came under fire for canceling an appearance by novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen after he signed an open letter. Critical speech Israeli military response. Many writers withdrew from events at 92 and staff quit.

And Frankfurt Book Fair She was criticized after postponing the ceremony honoring the Palestinian writer Adeniya Shibli, which had been announced months ago, “because of the war started by Hamas, from which millions of people in Israel and Palestine are suffering.” Shibli later said that organizers falsely claimed she supported the postponement.

More than 1,500 authors and publishers signed a letter of protest against the decision, with philosopher Slavoj Žižek using his opening speech in Frankfurt to describe it as “scandalous”.