An open letter issued today by The New Statesman and endorsed by a broad coalition of creators, performers, lawmakers, and public intellectuals makes a direct, unequivocal statement: Sally Rooney is a writer, not a terrorist.
This letter responds to the criticism Rooney has attracted after she revealed last week that she could no longer have her books sold in the United Kingdom, a result of the British government’s ban on Palestine Action, an activist group she supports with proceeds from her novels.
The appeal, addressed to the British authorities, plainly reiterates that Rooney is a writer, not a terrorist. It further argues that the way she has been treated by those in power amounts to a subtle form of censorship.
Public access to her works should remain unimpeded. Removing them from circulation under these misguided and harsh anti-terror statutes contravenes the fundamental rights of free speech and expression long cherished in this nation. We reject censorship in all its forms—whether direct or indirect—and urge the government to reverse course, revising the laws that have brought us to this point of repressive absurdity.
Rooney’s growing chorus of supporters includes scholars such as Amitav Ghosh, Namwali Serpell, Naomi Klein, and Slavoj Žižek. Many fellow writers are also stepping up, including Sophie Kemp, Patricia Lockwood, and Zadie Smith.
Two lead actors from the Normal People adaptation have joined the cri de cœur. And there are welcome wildcard supporters as well, such as Massive Attack.
Tanjil Rashid, the Statesman’s cultural editor, framed the letter in a forceful op-ed that challenges not only the United Kingdom’s broadly framed anti-terror laws but censorship in a wider sense.
Hear, hear. In the Beautiful World…, books ought to be accessible to all.
