We, Akbild Against Silencing (a group of PhD candidates from the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna) are starting this fundraiser in support of our colleague Nour Shantout. Nour, a Syrian-Palestinian PhD candidate and artist, was unjustly fired by the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna on October 9. 2024. Following the Academy’s decision, the Austrian Academy of Science (ÖAW-DOC) terminated her doctoral fellowship (granted until Feb 2026) thereby revoking her funding of 46,759€ per annum.
Nour Shantout’s dismissal was triggered by a reposted story on her personal Instagram account. The post was authored by the popular account Disorientalising in the context of Israel’s intensified bombing of Lebanon, stating, “‘Death to Israel’ is not just a threat. It is a moral imperative and the only acceptable solution. May the entire colony burn to the ground for good”.
The Academy of Fine Arts publicly declared that the story „constitutes a criminal offense under Austrian law“, implicitly referencing the offense of incitement to hatred. Thereby, the institution disregarded the presumption of innocence and effectively usurped the role of a judicial authority. Moreover, the Academy’s allegations were demonstrably false, as evidenced by the authorities dropping two separate criminal investigations against Nour Shantout. Despite that fact, the Academy has not taken any steps towards redressal, it has refused to apologise or acknowledge the fallacy of its allegations. In light of these abuses of institutional power, legal action is now being pursued against the Academy for potential defamation.
We firmly stand in solidarity with Nour and against institutional violence and systematic anti-Palestinian repression in Academia. We are now starting this fundraier to help Nour with previous and ongoing legal costs. Our goal is to raise EUR 7.500.- by 15th of July. We need your support for reaching this goal. Please donate and share this call as widely as you can.
To support: https://fundrazr.com/againstsilencing?ref=ab_0PVxTF0oL7n0PVxTF0oL7n
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