'A profound rift': Anger grows over CCA's response to Palestine protests

On Tuesday this week (24 June), the Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA), one of the most important community spaces in Glasgow, appeared to turn on its own community. The week before, Art Workers for Palestine Scotland (AWFPS) had announced they planned to hold a five-day festival in CCA’s communal courtyard from 24 to 28 June, that would centre on “Palestinian liberation, Palestinian art and culture, anticolonial thought and the complicity of our arts organisations”. The event was in response to the CCA Board’s recent decision not to endorse the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement or PACBI (Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel).

But on the first day of the event, the police were called in and ugly scenes occurred on Sauchiehall Street at the front of CCA, which saw a 63-year-old woman manhandled and arrested by the police. The woman is now facing three police charges, and it’s been reported that her fibula was fractured during the arrest. AWFPS call this escalation by the police “an unacceptable abuse of power that cannot be divorced from the broader climate of state repression of pro-Palestinian organising across the UK.” AWFPS had brought their protest outside as they were not allowed entry to CCA for their programme of events, which AWFPS claim had previously been discussed and agreed with CCA staff.

Following this escalation and the over-the-top response by police, CCA’s Board put out a statement saying they closed CCA on 24 June due to “security and safety concerns” and that AWFPS intended an “occupation of the courtyard space”. CCA also stated that police were called “in response to a forced entry”. But a statement by AWFPS, shared with The Skinny, contradicts CCA’s version of events. 

“We are compelled to set the record straight,” reads AWFPS’s statement. “At no point did AWPS ‘occupy’ or ‘take over’ the CCA building. CCA management locked the building and placed private security on site, pre-empting our arrival. As soon as arts workers attempted to enter the space, Police Scotland arrived in force, triggering a peaceful protest outside.” 

Rather than responding to a “forced entry”, AWFPS claims “Police Scotland were present before the planned activities, and multiple police vans were parked close to the CCA at the Glasgow School of Art buildings. The CCA had invited police in advance of our activities. These actions forced our programme onto the street.”

'Trashing their legacy': Scotland's art scene reacts

The events on Tuesday have left many in Glasgow and Scotland’s wider arts community angry and in dismay. On Instagram, artist Rae-Yen Song 宋瑞渊, whose solo show life-bestowing cadaverous soooooooooooooooooooot ran at the CCA last year, said: “I was absolutely appalled to see the violent escalation and hostility that unfolded yesterday at CCA… I see the decision to call the police as a dangerous and shameful attempt to conclude a situation that was directly provoked by your earlier strategy of closure, rather than openness.” 

The CCA’s actions were also condemned by the political arts organisation Arika. “The police are never the answer,” Arika said in a statement, “and by calling them to kettle and arrest members of the CCA’s own community, the senior management and board have made explicit a profound rift between themselves and the artists, audiences and workers who make up that community.”

A powerful joint statement was also put out by a group of Glasgow-based film festivals and indie film exhibitors who partner with CCA on events. The group includes CinemaAttic, Glasgow Short Film Festival, SQIFF, Havana Glasgow Film Festival, Matchbox Cine, Samizdat Eastern European Film Festival and Take One Action. The statement reads: “It is clear to us that the current management and board are betraying CCA’s mission and wilfully trashing its legacy, by calling police on a peaceful and constructive protest that reflected the same values that CCA, a publicly funded venue, has declared throughout its history.” You'll find many more similar statements online from across the arts community.

Following these events, AWFPS have called for the dismissal of CCA's interim director Steve Slater and the dismantling of the current CCA Board. They are also asking that CCA “publicly support the woman who was arrested, drop all charges, and commit to resourcing her legal and medical needs”. AWFPS also call for CCA to sign up to PACBI, following the increasing public outcry to do so and at the request of the majority of CCA's staff.

In response to being shut out of the CCA, AWFPS have moved their events to the Listen Gallery, and have built what they’re calling a “Liberated Zone”, which is “a welcoming, intergenerational space centred on Palestinian art, culture, and resistance.” Their five-day-long programme continues until tomorrow. For information on the Liberated Zone and the various activities taking place, head to AWFPS's Instagram page.

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We contacted Steve Slater and the CCA communication team to get their reaction to AWFPS’s statement, and they sent a statement via email, which we've included below in full:

“On Monday 23 June Art Workers for Palestine Scotland (AW4PS) notified us of a week-long programme of events to take place in CCA’s courtyard space. This followed from an announcement the previous week that they intended to occupy the CCA. AW4PS included in their proposal that CCA would agree not to contact the police or security personnel under any circumstances, which in light of our safeguarding responsibilities and legal abilities, we were not able to entertain. There was no agreement reached, and security, legal, and insurance concerns remained unresolved.

“The ‘Liberation Zone’ had not followed CCA’s standard programming process — which includes contracting, safeguarding, risk assessment, and access considerations — and there was no prior agreement or contract in place. CCA is proud to have hosted events in solidarity with Palestine in the past and remains open to future programme proposals submitted through our usual framework. We are not able to accommodate uncontracted events, especially on short notice, for reasons of safety and legal compliance. We were advised by security and by the police to close to the public.

“On the morning of Tuesday 24 June we were closed to the public, with access for staff, cultural tenants and contract hires only. AW4PS made a post on social media saying that they needed ‘as many people to mobilise at CCA at 12 noon to enter the building and reclaim the public courtyard’.

“At 12 noon, groups gathered outside both public entrances. A group entered the building's Scott Street foyer area. At this point, the police were called. The building was evacuated to ensure the safety of staff and partner organisations. No charges have been pressed by CCA, nor have we had further contact with police regarding this matter.”