Adelaide Writers’ Week is facing one of its biggest public ruptures in years after a wave of writers withdrew from the 2026 program in protest at the removal of Palestinian-Australian author and academic Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah.
The dispute is no longer just about a single session. It has turned into a broader argument over who gets to decide what is “too sensitive” in public cultural life — and whether arts festivals, increasingly shaped by board-level risk management, can still function as places for difficult ideas.
What happened?
Abdel-Fattah was scheduled to appear at Adelaide Writers’ Week to discuss her new novel, Discipline. The Adelaide Festival board later removed her from the program, saying it had concerns about “cultural sensitivity” in the wake of the Bondi mass killing that left 15 people dead.
In its statement, the board said it was not suggesting any connection between Abdel-Fattah or her writing and the tragedy, but argued that “given her past statements” it would not be culturally sensitive to continue to program her so soon after Bondi. The board also said it had begun reviewing festival operations and decisions through the lens of “community cohesion”.
My statement in response to the racist decision to cancel me from Adelaide Writers' Week. https://t.co/HktwrcWveT pic.twitter.com/EDqTOteA1S
— Randa Abdel-Fattah (@RandaAFattah) January 8, 2026
Why are writers walking away?
Writers who withdrew described the decision as a line-crossing moment — not simply a programming change, but a precedent that could encourage cancellations based on perceived controversy rather than the work itself.
Among those who have withdrawn are high-profile authors and public intellectuals including Michelle de Kretser, Melissa Lucashenko, Peter Greste, Yanis Varoufakis, Evelyn Araluen, Clare Wright, Chelsea Watego, Bernadette Brennan and Amy Remeikis, with others signalling they would reconsider participation unless the decision is reversed.
Araluen described the removal as a “devastating betrayal” of the festival’s democratic traditions, arguing that the program was being reshaped into a public spectacle of censorship rather than an exchange of ideas.
What Abdel-Fattah is saying
Abdel-Fattah has called the decision “a blatant and shameless act of anti-Palestinian racism and censorship” and a “despicable attempt” to associate her with an atrocity she had nothing to do with. In her response, she argued that the board’s logic treated her mere presence as inherently “insensitive” and positioned her as a trigger for grief — a framing she says strips her of agency and humanity.
The power dynamics behind the fallout
The controversy has also drawn attention to governance: Adelaide Writers’ Week sits under the Adelaide Festival banner, but has its own director, Louise Adler. Reporting has highlighted that the Adelaide Festival board is chaired by marketing executive Tracey Whiting and includes senior business and media figures, with critics noting a reduced presence of artists on boards compared with previous eras.
Adler has previously warned that as arts organisations rely more on external funding, boards can become more cautious and risk-driven — with artistic independence increasingly vulnerable when sponsors, donors or lobby groups object to programming decisions.
The political layer
The issue escalated after South Australia’s Premier, Peter Malinauskas, backed the Adelaide Festival board’s decision. That support has strengthened claims from critics that cultural institutions are under growing pressure to prioritise political and reputational considerations over curatorial judgment.
Separately, think tank The Australia Institute withdrew sponsorship support, arguing that cancelling authors runs against the spirit of open debate that literary festivals are meant to protect.
Why this matters beyond one festival
For readers outside Australia, the argument may look like a familiar pattern: a cultural institution responds to national trauma by tightening its risk posture, and the result is a clash between calls for sensitivity and fears of censorship. What makes this case especially combustible is that the removal was justified not by anything said at the festival, but by the timing of grief — and by the author’s past political commentary.
Whether the festival can stabilise the program now depends on what happens next: whether more writers withdraw, whether sponsors continue to pull back, and whether Adelaide Writers’ Week can convincingly reassert its independence while still claiming to serve a “cohesive” public moment.
For ongoing reporting and primary accounts, see coverage from ABC News and The Guardian, both of which have tracked the withdrawals, board statement and political response.
Written by Swikriti
