Staged by Art Workers for Palestine Scotland (AW4PS), Saturday’s events expanded into a full public programme, including children’s activities, an experimental singing workshop, a solidarity book and literature exchange, and a letter-writing session in support of hunger strikers and political prisoners. A new zine produced by AW4PS, Blinking the Third Eye: A Short History of the CCA, was also launched.
Dozens of people attended the first day of the two-day programme on Saturday, where funds were raised to support the Gaza Skate Team and Gaza Mutual Aid Funds.
Organisers said the aim was to create an open, welcoming environment for reflection, creativity and discussion around Palestine.
A representative from AWFPS said: “These events are about holding space for togetherness and community at a time of immense grief and urgency.
“They are about learning, creating, organising and insisting that cultural spaces must stand on the side of liberation.”
The return of the Liberated Zone follows the attempt to stage a similar event in June last year, which was halted by police. A woman, 63, claimed she was hospitalised for two weeks after what she described as a “violent police response” to the protest at the CCA.
The event, held on June 24, was attended by police who removed people from the building.
On Monday, it was announced that the new chair of the CCA board had quit the role a few weeks after being appointed, after coming under fire from pro-Palestine campaigners.
Muse Greenwood faced calls to resign for not committing the CCA to a cultural boycott of Israel after being brought in to lead the venue. There are now only two board members listed on the website of the CCA, which was awarded new three-year funding from the Scottish Government worth £3.4 million by Creative Scotland last January.
In response to the planned AWFPS protest, the CCA said in a blog post: “An upcoming event titled Liberated Zone: Creative Protest has been proposed by Art Workers for Palestine Scotland. This activity is not part of CCA’s programme and is not produced by CCA. The organisers have stated they have no intention of disrupting the CCA’s programming and that the protest will be carried out with respect and solidarity with the staff team.
“On this basis, CCA staff have communicated our intention to take an accommodating and de-escalatory approach to activity that does not disrupt programmed events. We have shared our preparatory work with partners and organisers, and proposed additional preparatory meetings in advance to coordinate health and safety efforts. For clarity, we will not be enlisting additional security. A security representative will be present during evening hours to monitor the bar, in line with normal procedures.
We have been visited by local police regarding Art Workers for Palestine’s planned activities. This was unexpected. We reassured them that police presence will not be necessary and have specifically asked them not to be present.”
