We, the undersigned resident artists, alumni and staff at Rijksakademie
van Beeldende Kunsten, stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people.


Against widespread media bias, tactical propaganda campaigns and a
concerted effort by state governments to dehumanise Palestinian people
and delegitimise their right to exist, we feel this is not a moment to
stay silent, complacent or complicit. We reject the censorship of anyone
speaking out against the violence being carried out against the
Palestinian people. We understand the need to speak up in this moment
where such censorship feels rampant and pervasive—not least in the
cultural field, where many of our art worker colleagues are actively
ostracized, belittled and penalized by those in positions of power, for
proclaiming their solidarity with the oppressed.


The Palestinian people have the right to exist, the right to
self-determination and the right to live meaningfully, peacefully and
fearlessly. We find it urgent not only to lend our support in amplifying
the voices of Palestinian people and their struggle, but to also
clearly condemn the ongoing land occupation, destruction of homes and
villages, apartheid, ethnic cleansing and genocide being carried out by
the settler colonial state of Israel against the people of Palestine for
more than 75 years.


We reject the narrative that criticism against the state of Israel and
its ongoing practices of colonial violence is antisemitic. We condemn
antisemitism, as well as islamophobia and all forms of racial, ethnic,
religious, and cultural discrimination, and we condemn those who would
use the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the siege of the Gaza Strip
as a means of inciting any kind of discrimination, bigotry or harm.


At the time of writing this statement, since October 7, the Israeli
Occupation Forces' ongoing bombing of Gaza and the West Bank has killed
over 9,000 (including more than 3,500 children), injuring tens of
thousands more, and displacing approximately 2.3 million Palestinian
civilians.

Source: the Associated Press, https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-news-11-2-2023-6a398d4aeba979aef24960efc31eb772


This is a call for a ceasefire now, at the bare minimum.


This is a call for the end of the decades-long occupation and the ongoing genocide.


This is a call for artists, curators, museum staff, art collectors,
funders and other art workers to stand up against bigotry and
indifference. The reluctance to speak out, fueled by a desire to
maintain an apolitical image, perpetuates the suffering of those
impacted by the ongoing violence in Palestine.


We clamour in solidarity for all oppressed and indigenous peoples striving for freedom.


In the hope of a free Palestine, and in the hope of a world free from colonial violence,


__________________________________

Susanne Khalil Yusef makes immersive colourful installations by combining a wide range of media such as ceramics, textiles, and sculpture. At first glance, Yusef’s brightly coloured work seems light-hearted and playful, but if you look closer it refers to distress and dangerous situations. She raises critical questions about themes such as homeland and displacement, identity and socio-geographic power relations. The stories in her work are closely related to her own biography, such as the conflicts in her home country, Palestine.