Representatives of major cultural and research institutions in Germany, among them ITI Germany, the Goethe Institute, and the House of World Cultures, published a jouint statement related to the German constitution, article 5.3 – where freedom of art and science is granted. The group criticises culture boycott demands like those coming from the BDS movement against Israel as well as the anti BDS resolution of the German parliament to exclude critical voices from the public discourse.
The group states: “We share a mandate from the state to promote arts and culture, historical research and democratic education and to make these accessible to the general public. Toward this end, we rely on a public sphere that welcomes controversial debates in accordance with the norms of the German constitution. At the center of our initiative lies a common struggle against antisemitism, racism, right-wing extremism and any form of violent religious fundamentalism.”
More than 1.400 artists, academics and cultural workers from Germany, or working with German partners in arts and science, have signed an open letter to support the initiative.