Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) x the87press

Joining with many other poetry and arts organizations, The 87 Press is signing on to the call of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI). This means we will not collaborate with Israeli academic and cultural institutions that are systematically complicit in whitewashing, justifying or otherwise maintaining the Israeli occupation and denial of basic Palestinian rights. We are formalising a principle that has always been a fundamental part of the ethos of the press since our founding in 2018 in the midst of Israel’s ongoing genocide against 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza. With this stance we add our voice to a growing number of other arts and literary organisations across cultures and national borders who are likewise joining the nonviolent Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement in support of Palestinian liberation.

The 87 Press is a result of intergenerational knowledge and experience. We believe that literature and the arts have an important role in the striving for liberation and justice. We refer our audience to our October 2023 statement. Since then, the offensive has intensified with a letter in the Lancet Journal estimating at around 180,000 people could be killed as a direct result of Israel’s genocidal actions in besieged and occupied Gaza, including forced starvation. This number is rising daily with schools, hospitals, markets, and supposed safe zones intentionally and systematically targeted by Israeli airstrikes.

Further information regarding the Palestinian call for the cultural boycott of Israel can be found here: https://bdsmovement.net/pacbi

A list of other presses joining can be found here: https://www.writersagainstthewarongaza.com/pacbi