Naomi Klein joins renowned writers in Gaza boycott of PEN World Voices Festival

Naomi Klein, Michelle Alexander and Hisham Matar are among dozens of writers who have signed an open letter to PEN America this week saying they would boycott this year's PEN World Voices Festival due to the an "inadequate response" to the genocide in Gaza.

The PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature is an annual week-long literary festival in New York City and Los Angeles that showcases international literature and new writers.

The festival is produced by PEN America, a nonprofit organisation working to advance literature, promote free expression, and foster international literary fellowship.

The writers condemn the organisation for failing Palestinian writers and, journalists and their allies in the US since Israel launched its assault on Gaza in October with at least 31,000 Palestinians killed since then.

The writers also pointed out the lack of apology to Palestinian writer Randa Jarrar as they remained silent when she was dragged out of an event featuring a well-known "pro-Israel" celebrity.

While the writers are aware of PEN America expressing concern about the war on Gaza, the writers have questioned the organisation's lack of action on the issue.

"PEN America has not launched any substantial coordinated support or issued any reports highlighting the scale and scope of the attacks on writers in Gaza, or on Palestinian speech and culture more broadly," the letter said.

The writers noted that the guild had done "very little" to mobilise its members during Gaza, unlike during the Ukraine war or honouring journalists killed in Latin America.

At least 90 Palestinian journalists have been killed in the assault on Gaza, along with three Lebanese media workers, according to the Committee for the Projection of Journalists (CPJ), in many cases deliberately targeted by Israeli forces, according to rights groups.

In a statement to The New Arab, PEN America said: "We regret that writers whom we had invited to take part in the PEN World Voices Festival have decided to no longer participate. We respect these authors and very much want their voices in the festival."

PEN America says they have been engaging in conversations with many of the writers.

But since seeing the open letter, the organisation said it has reached out again and "hopes to step up the dialogue about how best to fulfil our [their] mission of defence of free expression and dialogue across difference at this time".

Naomi Klein was one of the many speakers, alongside congress members Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush, who addressed a march to the US Capitol, demanding Washington pressure Israel for an immediate ceasefire in its war on Gaza.