Montreal cultural organizations reaffirm their support for Palestinian liberation
Eleven Montreal arts and culture organizations pledge support for Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel
On Feb. 18, 11 cultural organizations in Montreal officially affirmed or reaffirmed their endorsement of Palestine through the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI).
The groups stated their commitment to the liberation of Palestine and the global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement.
PACBI began in 2004 to advocate for the boycott of Israeli academic and cultural institutions for their complicity in Israel’s denial of Palestinian rights. Cultural institutions that have committed to PACBI will not collaborate, fund or accept funding from the Israeli government or related funding bodies, and call for a boycott of all cultural and academic products that normalize the state of Israel. In addition, they can show support for Palestine by hosting fundraisers and solidarity events or highlighting Palestinian artists and authors.
To date, Ada X, articule, Atelier La Coulée, Céline Bureau, Centre Clark, Centre des arts actuels SKOL, Dazibao, Metonymy Press, OBORO, PME-ART and Vidéographe have supported or reaffirmed their commitments to PACBI. The organizations have joined a growing global movement of artists, academics and cultural workers dedicated to supporting the Palestinian people in their struggle for liberation and self-determination, according to a Feb. 18 press release.
This endorsement highlights the crucial role that cultural institutions play in resisting settler colonialism and the oppression of Indigenous groups against their occupiers.
In October 2023, over 4,000 Canadian artists and cultural workers signed a solidarity letter stating, “As artists, cultural workers, and academics, we stand strong in support of the Palestinian struggle for freedom and against all forms of racism and settler-colonial violence.”
“The main step that PACBI calls for is to not endorse organizations—be it universities, arts organizations or museums—that are complicit in the ongoing genocide,” said Samuel Garrigó Meza, programming director at contemporary arts-run centre articule.
Garrigó Meza and Eva-Loan Ponton-Pham co-organized the initiative to involve cultural organizations with PACBI.
“Art is always political,” Garrigó Meza said. “We are implicated in the social capital of where we are, and we're in a position where we can be a place of resistance.”
Both Garrigó Meza and Ponton-Pham are heavily involved in Montreal’s artistic and cultural sector and began reaching out to other organizations that had previously shown support for Palestine.
“I think people expect that there's going to be a purity test,” Garrigó Meza said, “that when you join PACBI, somebody's going to come in and look at your books to verify that not $1 came from Israeli-supported funding. That’s not what [cultural organizations] are joining. This is about showing a network of support.”
Ponton-Pham is the co-general coordinator at Atelier La Coulée, a workshop specializing in welding and foundry. She said that one of the goals was also to demystify what it means to join PACBI and support organizations unsure about making a public statement.
“It’s just one step and one action,” Ponton-Pham said. “It's putting yourself in motion towards being in solidarity. It’s also about trying to have the most impact.”
This article originally appeared in Volume 45, Issue 10, published March 4, 2025.
