Bestselling Jewish novelist removed from two UK literary events
“I never expected my career in the UK would be prejudiced by my being Jewish. It made Britain seem like a place I didn’t know and maybe never knew."
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFA book (Illustrative)(photo credit: INGIMAGE)
Bestselling novelist Richard Zimler, has been dropped from two "literary events" in the United Kingdom due to two cultural event coordinators terminating publicizing his novel due to feared outrage from anti-Israel activists, according to the Guardian.Zimler was "deeply shocked and upset," saying that he had no words to be said initially after being told, and now worries that an "atmosphere of fear" and antisemitism means that Jewish professionals will now be denied work.“I never expected my career in the UK would be prejudiced by my being Jewish. It made Britain seem like a place I didn’t know and maybe never knew. Even just asking about my religious affiliation struck me as outrageous," Zimler wrote in the Observer.While his publicist added, "I was very shocked and surprised. People in the literary world are not usually narrow-minded. Everyone who knows Richard knows he is his own person.”Zimler has won many awards for his works, publishing 11 novels translated into 23 languages. Now living in Portugal, the irony is within the fact that Zimler has no connection to the State of Israel nor does he have family in the country.“If cultural organizations are afraid of hosting events for Jewish writers, then Britain has taken a big step backwards," Zimler said in his Observer op-ed, stating further that he has been "long endeavored in [his] novels to give voice to people who have been systematically silenced by prejudice and bigotry."
