Scotiabank Withdraws Sponsorship of Giller Prize Amid Pressure from Anti-Israel Activists

February 5, 2025 TruthUSA

The Giller Foundation has cut ties with primary sponsor Scotiabank amid pressure from activists urging the organization to disassociate from sponsors with investments in Israeli companies.

The foundation has not publicly disclosed the reason for ending its partnership with Scotiabank, which played a crucial role in raising its prestigious literary prize to $100,000. This decision drew criticism from activists who were concerned about the bank’s financial ties to Elbit Systems, an Israeli company specializing in drone systems and defense technologies.

“We appreciate Scotiabank’s unwavering support over the past two decades,” said Giller Foundation executive director Elana Rabinovitch in a statement. “Their contributions have been instrumental in elevating the Giller Prize to one of Canada’s premier literary awards, and we are excited to continue this legacy as we enter a new chapter.

When asked if the decision was motivated by the bank’s investment in an Israeli company, spokesperson Jacob Alvarado declined to comment further.

Scotiabank has also chosen not to address the situation publicly.

One author expressed disappointment with the Giller Foundation’s choice, believing it pandered to anti-Israel activists, fueling further criticisms.

“Dear Giller Prize, please stop lurching leftward to try and accommodate the ideologically captured, censorious, illiberal literary-activists,” Jewish novelist Hal Niedzviecki said in a social media post. “Nothing makes them stop, you will never be pure enough. Every sponsor is suspect. They are destroying the Canadian arts. Stand up to them.”

Best-selling author Ian Brodie also weighed in.

“Disappointing,” the University of Calgary professor wrote in a post on the X platform. “Scotiabank’s sponsorship of literary arts is admirable.”

A literary collective known as CanLit has been leading a boycott campaign against the Giller Prize since November 2023. It was established to show solidarity with anti-Israel activists following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.

CanLit claimed credit for pressuring the Giller Foundation into dropping Scotiabank as a sponsor in an X post.

“This divestment is a direct result of boycotting authors pushing the Giller to take action,” CanLit stated. “It will forever tarnish the Prize’s reputation as its leadership resisted these efforts through censorship, obstruction, and harassment of dissenting authors. This stain cannot be erased.”

CanLit vowed to keep up the pressure on the foundation to sever ties with two other sponsors they view as pro-Israel: Indigo Books and the Azrieli Foundation.

The group accused both sponsors of “supporting the ongoing oppression of Palestinians and stifling free expression in Canada.”

“One down, two to go,” added the group.

The Giller Prize was established in 1994 by Jack Rabinovitch in memory of his late wife, journalist Doris Giller. Their daughter, Elana Rabinovitch, serves as the executive director of the foundation. The award is presented annually to a Canadian author.

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