Dear HOME,
We are writing to you as a united cohort of Exhibiting Artists from the Manchester HOME Open Exhibition 2024. We are writing to express our deep disappointment, anger and shame in response to your decision to cancel the Voices of Resilience: A Celebration of Gazan Writing event that was due to take place on the 22nd April.
We feel this decision deeply contradicts the feelings of HOME visitors, creative workers, staff, supporters and those who felt they could trust HOME to be a voice of justice and reason. Your decision and silence could not be further from this, and results in your active complicity with the genocidal colonialism taking place towards the Palestinian people.
HOME, you have attempted to sweep the widespread and relentless suffering, genocide and continuous silencing of the Palestinian people under the carpet. We hope this letter is a reminder that we as artists that are currently being represented by HOME will not comply with this censorship and actively oppose it; we will raise our voices on behalf of those whom you have tried to silence. The motivations behind the cancellation are unclear, and we urge you to provide transparency and justification for your decision making. We do not accept the excuse of safety concerns and coining HOME as a “politically neutral” space to be one that upholds any logic, sense or credibility, at least in relation to HOME’s own policies and previous events you have hosted.
Your programming speaks for itself on these matters, with a rolling stream of Art, Cinema and Theatre that frequently explores the devastating effects of colonialism, warfare and displacement. HOME’s history of political consciousness includes their recent event hosting genocide denier and US politician Bernie Sanders; the Theatre production Silence which explores the violence and devastation faced by Partition; and even the statue of the political theorist Friedrich Engels commissioned by and installed on the doorstep of HOME. If political neutrality is the stance that HOME wishes to move forward with then we envision that your gallery walls will be bare, your cinema screens blank and your stages empty. Artistic expression is inherently political: you only need to look at the work in the HOME Open to evidence this.
Artistic freedom and safety does not exist under oppression and colonialism. HOME should set a standard for artistic integrity; neutrality on a genocide or normalisation of the slaughter and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians is unacceptable in Manchester. We as a cohort have decided to withdraw our artworks from the Home Open 2024 in protest of your decision.
OUR DEMANDS:
• HOME to Reinstate the event ‘Voices of Resilience’
• HOME to release a formal apology addressing HOME’s insensitivity to Palestinian suffering and in support of a permanent ceasefire
• HOME to address what steps will be taken in committing to anti-racism, specifically anti-Palestinian racism and anti-Islamophobia
• HOME to facilitate a public forum where community members from the Palestinian diaspora and their allies can express their concerns, provide feedback, and engage directly with the leadership of HOME
• HOME to protect freedom of speech and ensure the safety from sanctions toward any HOME member of staff or team member, including volunteers, who sign and share this letter and share our views in any form.
SIGNED IN SOLIDARITY WITH PALESTINE AND THE VOICES OF RESILIENCE TEAM, HOME OPEN ARTISTS
Freya Wysocki
Rhianwen Williams
Joe O'Rourke
Sophia Gardiner
Ella Booth-Pryce
Maria Jackson
Ciara Leeming
Marge Bradshaw
Bear Thomas
Grace Eardley
Anne Webster
Heather Alderson
Maeve Thompson
Radhika Parekh
Amrit Randhawa
Divya Avula
Rhian Bolton
George Gibson
Ella Otomewo
Sofija Zindule
Melody Peacock
Deeqa Ismail
Iona Schwalowsky-Monks
Samina Ali
Julia Roy- Williams
Nicola Moor
Jacob Longcake
Max Kent
David Dunnico
Liz Lock
Henry Thomas
Elizabeth McLoughlin
Fleur Yearsley
Adele Jordan
Isaac Jordan
Sarah-Joy Ford
Tilly Johnson
John-Paul Brown
Claire Curtin
Melissa Haigh
Maryanne Royle
Rowland Hill
Shannon Tran
Mollie Balshaw
Rebekah Beasley
Helen Davies
Izzy Hellam
Simon Woolham
Mike Chavez-Dawson
Hannah Wooll
Gwen Riley Jones
Lula Braimbridge
Tanith Mab
Nasima Bee
Mikesian Studio
Pip Watkins
Anna Robson
Ana Lucía Cuevas
Samantha Sidebottom
Elizabeth Wewiora
Parham Ghalamdar
Mei Yuk Wong
Kay Shah
Jamie Kirk
Jasmine Gardner
Ally Fallon
Ellie Cunningham
Shawn J Stephen
Mat Greaves
Federico Cossu
Ngozi Ugochukwu
Aida Foroutan
Elaine Fisher
Ella Jones
Isobel Shore
Naomi Harwin
Humberto Vélez
Sara Alwagfi
Kate Roper
Nell Smith
Natasha E.R. Withington
Beth Louise Halstead
Jack Clarke
Steve Whitewood
Amber Masters
Bilal Zafar Ranjha
Sacha F. Martinek
Rebecca Tutthill
Lily Brown
Gabriel Bennett Lovejoy
Alison Lord
KittyAurora
Danny Igoe
Dani Molyneux
Jacques Bara
Johnny Humes
Team Trident Press
Lisa Lorenz
Nan Collantine
Ella Mcintosh
Levi Felix Holton
Merike van de Vijver
Pita Santos
Hazel Stileman
Eve Gittins
Sarah Feinmann
Holly Staniforth
Victoria Hilton
Imogen Ella Richards
Maisie Pritchard
Martha Harris
Rowan Bridgwood
Becks Gio Joe
Phoebe Price
Charmagne Coble
Alicja Mrozowska
Olivia Madland Shorter
Lee Cooper
Bridget Coderc
IF YOU ARE AN ARTIST OR CREATIVE PROFESSIONAL IN SOLIDARITY PLEASE SIGN BELOW