Adelaide Writers Week Director Resigns Over Author Disinvitation

Louise Adler, the director of Adelaide Writers Week, has resigned in protest after the festival's board disinvited Palestinian-Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah from its 2026 program, sparking widespread withdrawals from writers and resignations from board members.

The decision, announced last Thursday, came amid heightened sensitivities following a deadly attack at Sydney's Bondi Beach on December 14, where two gunmen inspired by the Islamic State killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration. The Adelaide Festival board stated that, while Abdel-Fattah's writings had no connection to the incident, her past statements as a vocal critic of Israel made her appearance culturally insensitive at this time. The board emphasized the national grief and community tensions intensified by the attack.

Adler, who had strongly opposed the disinvitation, detailed her resignation in an opinion piece published Tuesday. "I cannot be party to silencing writers, so with a heavy heart I am resigning from my role as the director of the Adelaide Writers Week," she wrote. She described the move as a blow to free expression, warning of a chilling effect on speech in Australia. "Now religious leaders are...