Festival of cowardice: The cancellation of Randa Abdel-Fattah |
Boards of directors are a funny bunch. Often lacking expertise, claiming knowledge they do not have and insight that never illuminates, its members can make the cockup the stuff of legend. Instead of minding their own business and leaving the Adelaide Writers’ Week to take place without incident as part of the 2026 Adelaide Festival, an act of oafish meddling took place. The meddling centred on removing one invited author from the speaking schedule: the Australian-Palestinian writer and academic Randa Abdel-Fattah, who was to discuss her novel Discipline.
The Festival Board’s statement explaining their decision began with a note of gravity. “As the Board responsible for the Adelaide Festival organisation and the Adelaide Writers’ Week events, staff, volunteers and participants, we have today [January 8] advised scheduled writer Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah that the Board has formed the judgment that we do not wish to proceed with her scheduled appearance at next month’s Writers’ Week.” Then came the note of pure cowardice, framed in the bankrupt language of middle-management. “Whilst we do not suggest in any way that Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah or her writings have any connection with the tragedy at Bondi, given her past statements we have formed the view that it would not be culturally sensitive to continue to program her at this unprecedented time so soon after Bondi.”
Abdel-Fattah’s views on the war in Gaza had evidently proven so salty as to require her deprogramming. These were not specified, though various social media remarks and public statements attacking “this murderous Zionist colony” and claiming that Zionists had “no claim or right to cultural safety” were bound to have featured. Her removal was heartily approved by Norman Schueler of the Jewish Community Council of South Australia and the South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas.
If this decision was intended to reflect balance, intellectual awareness and understanding about the shootings on 14th December 2025 that took place at a Bondi Beach event celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, it failed on........