08.01.2024 | Open letter to the Berlin Senate Cultural Administration and to Joe Chialo, State Minister for Culture and Social Cohesion
We inform about an open letter from Berlin-based cultural producers of various disciplines "For the preservation of freedom of art and freedom of expression":
Open letter to the Berlin Senate Cultural Administration and to Joe Chialo, State Minister for Culture and Social Cohesion
We – Berlin-based cultural producers of various disciplines – protest:
For the preservation of the freedom of art and the freedom of expression
Against the compulsory commitment to the controversial IHRA definition of antisemitism as a prerequisite for cultural funding from the federal state of Berlin
Against the political instrumentalization of antisemitism clauses
The Berlin Senate Cultural Administration is planning to award funding from the cultural budget of the state of Berlin on condition that applicants sign an antisemitism clause, with immediate effect.
Anyone who signs the antisemitism clause in its present form must acknowledge that they are for a "diverse society" and against "any form of antisemitism according to the definition of antisemitism of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance and its extension by the German government."[1]
This decision by the Senate Cultural Administration does not recognize that there is a controversial debate about the IHRA's definition of antisemitism[2], as well as an alternative definition developed by international scholars: the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism.[3] The latter was explicitly drafted in order to prevent the imputation of antisemitism from being abused and politically instrumentalized, and responds to ambiguities within the IHRA definition.
We strongly protest against the inclusion of this specific antisemitism clause as a legally binding requirement for cultural funding by the State of Berlin.
The measure was implemented without any prior open debate or consultation; no transparent decision-making process was carried out, and no affected persons, associations or institutions were consulted. This understanding of freedom of expression and of artistic freedom is profoundly undemocratic! The Senate Cultural Administration fails to recognize that such a forced acknowledgement is an encroachment on constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights.[4]
The Berlin Cultural Administration’s elevation of a specific definition of antisemitism into a doctrine of cultural policy represents an absolute exception, a differentiation that does not exist for any other form of discrimination. We are against this hierarchization of forms of discrimination (and resulting division) of marginalized social groups, and consider this to be dangerous.
We see the fight against all other forms of discrimination and inequality as a task that also applies to culture. The fight against racism goes hand in hand with the fight against antisemitism, as well as against islamophobia. It is our concern to fight all these battles in solidarity and independently of current events.
However, the horrific events of October 7, the war in Gaza and the heated polemical debates that are taking place in Germany on this subject give rise to fears that clauses such as those discussed here will only serve to create an administrative basis for disinviting and canceling events with cultural workers who are critical of Israel.[5] This also affects Jewish cultural workers in Germany who show solidarity with Palestine, who advocate for dialogue and peace-oriented solutions, and who are confronted with accusations of antisemitism by non-Jewish Germans – an extremely shameful and absurd constellation!
The IHRA's "non-legally binding working definition of antisemitism" is not intended to aid criminal prosecution, but serves to improve the monitoring of antisemitic tendencies in society. Additionally, it is not intended as an instrument for the state sanction of cultural expressions and invitation policies, and is unsuitable for this purpose due to its open wording. The German government’s own extension of the IHRA definition only serves to amplify its one-sided application in relation to criticism of Israeli government policy. [6]
Using the IHRA definition of antisemitism, which is open to interpretation, as an instrument to sanction the possibility to withhold or withdraw funding is fatal!
Financial support and public platforms are currently being withheld and withdrawn as a means to exert pressure to exclude critical positions on Israeli government policy and the war in Gaza from public discourse. The planned clause will make it easier for the administration and politicians to use this leverage and further restrict the space for necessary discourse.
International and especially Palestinian artists are particularly affected by the clause. Many already report that they feel held under general suspicion due to ethnic or religious attributions. A climate of fear is emerging in a field in which many of us are already exposed to precarious working conditions and residence permits. The extent of self-censorship that already exists today is damaging Berlin's cultural sector. Not only individuals are affected by this intimidation and insecurity, but also institutions, as can be seen from the few public statements released on this matter by institutions.
The Senate’s procedure represents a step backwards in light of successful efforts in recent years to diversify and open up Berlin's art and cultural sector as a location for international art discourse. We condemn the repressive cultural policy signal that this sets.
It is to be expected that funding applicants will exclude certain groups and individuals from planned projects in anticipatory obedience. The fear is that no one will be protected by this antisemitism clause, but many will be put at risk.
With its plan, the Senate Cultural Administration actively contributes to the further intensification of the aggressive and often nonobjective public debate and the deepening of social divisions. Discussion and learning spaces in which political contexts might be culturally communicated and debates facilitated are thus hindered, instead of being encouraged. This contradicts our own commitment to a diverse society.
It is not the task of the cultural administration to define the social boundaries of freedom of art and opinion, provided that the expression of opinion remains within the boundaries of the legal framework. Rather, this is the complex task of culture itself, as well as of intellectual discourse and of the critical public. In this pluralistic field, it is important to develop social norms and agreements for social coexistence. Norms are not an instrument of power, and under no circumstances can they be used against the constitutional rights of individuals and groups, or as a means of exerting pressure to stifle social debate.
In cultural funding, the principle of equality applies regardless of gender, sexual orientation, ethnic or religious background or political position. The relevance and quality of all funded cultural projects is ensured by qualified expert juries and committees.
As artists and cultural professionals, we reject political interference in the function, methods and freedom of cultural production and call on the Senate Cultural Administration to withdraw the antisemitism clause immediately!
Footnotes:
[1] The clause is already being used in the current application process for resumption funding. See the press release of the Berlin Senate Cultural Administration from January 4th, 2024: berlin.de/sen/kultgz/aktuelles/pressemitteilungen/...
[2] holocaustremembrance.com/de/resources/working-defi...
[3] https://jerusalemdeclaration.org/
[4] For argumentation on this, see: verfassungsblog.de/die-implementation-der-ihra-arb...
[5] https://linktr.ee/archiveofsilence; news.artnet.com/art-world/germany-cancellations-24...
[6] antisemitismusbeauftragter.de/Webs/BAS/DE/bekaempf...
The German government has adopted the following extension to the IHRA definition: "In addition, the state of Israel, which is understood as a Jewish collective, can also be the target of such attacks."