Elif Shafak, The Guardian; For authoritarians, stifling the arts is of a piece with demonising minorities
"Art and literature are – and will be increasingly – at the centre of the
new culture wars. What might seem like sporadic, disconnected incidents
here and there are in truth manifestations of a similar mindset, a
growing wave of bigotry...
In country after country, we have seen enough examples to understand
that a divisive and aggressive rhetoric against LGBT and women’s rights
is intrinsic to the rise of populist nationalism and populist
authoritarianism.
Top-down censorship and the control of art and literature are
inseparable components of the hatred and discrimination against sexual
minorities, as well as against immigrants and intellectuals. Artists and
writers cannot afford not to know what is happening to colleagues in
other parts of the world. We cannot afford to be silent."
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