DistantNews
🇮🇱 Israel /Culture & Society

Peter Beinart’s ‘Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza’ wins PEN America award

From Jerusalem Post · (3h ago) English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • Progressive Jewish author Peter Beinart won the 2026 PEN America Literary Award for nonfiction for his book, 'Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning.'
  • The book offers a critique of the American Jewish community's relationship with Israel and its response to the war in Gaza, arguing for Palestinian liberation as integral to Jewish liberation.
  • The award signifies a shift for PEN America, which has faced internal tensions regarding its stance on Israel and has previously published a report accusing Israel of genocide.

The PEN America Literary Award for nonfiction has been bestowed upon progressive Jewish author Peter Beinart for his incisive work, 'Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning.' This recognition highlights a notable evolution within PEN America, an organization long dedicated to defending free expression and authors' rights.

This book is about the stories Jews tell ourselves that blind us to Palestinian suffering. It’s about how we came to value a state, Israel, above the lives of all the people who live under its control. And it’s about why I believe that Palestinian liberation means Jewish liberation as well.

— Peter BeinartDescribing the core themes and arguments of his award-winning book.

Beinart, a vocal critic of Israeli policies and editor-at-large of Jewish Currents magazine, uses his book to dissect the American Jewish community's complex relationship with Israel and its response to the Gaza conflict. He posits that inherited narratives often blind the community to Palestinian suffering and questions the prioritization of a state over the lives of those under its control. His argument extends to the belief that Palestinian liberation is intrinsically linked to Jewish liberation.

The judges lauded the book for offering 'a model for writing a new story when inherited narratives no longer hold.' This award comes at a time when PEN America itself has navigated significant internal polarization concerning Israel. The organization has faced criticism from progressives for defending freedom of speech for artists discussing Israel, while also publishing a report accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza.

offers a model for writing a new story when inherited narratives no longer hold.

— PEN America award judgesPraising the book's innovative approach to storytelling and critique.

This latest award to Beinart signals PEN America's continued support for critical perspectives on Israel, even as the organization grapples with the complexities of free speech, censorship, and advocacy in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Beinart himself has experienced challenges to his own free speech, facing calls for cancellation for his views, underscoring the contentious nature of the discourse surrounding Israel and Palestine.

not to police speech nor deprive audiences of artists’ work

— PEN AmericaQuoting a letter from PEN America advocating against cultural boycotts of Israel.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog