.

Sarah J.

Williams

Author, Writer, Freelance Journalist

Blog

Boycotting books and authors?

11/4/2024

Right now, the boycotting of some big authors etc is in force, such as Neil Gaiman, J. K. Rowling, Israeli cultural institutions and many others. Some boycotts are new, some are old and more well-known.

But as supporters of the whole human race who are up-to-date with what's going on in the world, how can we possibly keep up? Is it possible, or are we fighting an uphill battle? And, is boycotting a way to stand our ground against what we deem unacceptable behaviour/opinions, or are there better methods out there? 

My answer is that boycotting is a great democratic and non-violent practice that has worked for many years to get people and even nations to listen. I could tire you with examples, but will instead just mention a couple of them. 

In August 2023, Klook successfully boycotted circuses, performances, shows and animal photo experiences. They did this to help protect against animal cruelty. 

In June 2022, 100s of companies boycotted the governmental conference, "Safe to Be Me." It was an LGBTQIA+ conference, however, it was boycotted because of the UK government's active approach to conversion therapy. The boycott was successful, and the conference was cancelled. 

If you want to read more about several successful boycotts that happen every year, here is a site that does a full take on the subject: The Ethical Consumer.

A man writing

Boycotts works! 

Buying and talking about what we want more of, is a very good way to reinforce what we want to increase in the world. And going radio silent and holding our wallets shut when something we don't agree with is happening, are clever tactics. The more who do this, the greater impact the boycott will have.

But what do we do when a boycott impacts our favourite authors and books? When parts of our soul are not to be mentioned and maybe never spoken about ever again. Yes, it sounds harsh and big for a person who doesn't love books. But for me, these boycotts are a big problem. 

If you understand that loving books is a love relationship which defines a part of who we are as individuals, then maybe you will start to see what a great impact it has on us.

As George Herbert once said, "Love and coughing cannot be hid," and it's true. When you're in love, you want to shout from the rooftops. The same often happens when you've found a book you love.

TV series, films, beauty products, etc often have the same impact on us. Especially if we also define ourselves as beauty gurus, film enthusiasts, book dragons or gamers. Then our love becomes extra hard to hide. 

Harder still, is if a book, TV series, song, etc has meant the world to us during a period of our lives which was maybe rocky and otherwise filled with sadness. Maybe it was the Harry Potter book series which got you through high school when you were bullied. Maybe it was Good Omens.

Maybe it wasn't even a hard time you were having. Maybe you had a great time, and you associate the song, book, film, etc with the best time of your life. 

Whichever it was, that piece of entertainment and/or characters from it, are now a part of you as much as your DNA is. Marketers know this, and that's why we're such excellent consumers who continue to make more money for corporations and entertainers.

Book

We want more, and more and more. As well as shout out our love for the products to anyone and everyone. Even those who don't want to listen. We all know that they will listen eventually! 

But what do we do when we love something so badly and it's being boycotted (often for a good reason)? 

My advice to you is what I do myself: I have found a selected few people that I know never spread whatever I say to other people, and I talk about the boycotted books with them. They won't encourage others to read these books, and I won't publicly encourage others to read from these authors either. 

They're silenced, but my love for their work of art and what it means to me isn't. 

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So you can still be aware of what's happening in the world, follow the causes you believe in, and boycott even your favourite artists. Life will change for you, true. But maybe it needs to for a greater good.

I will end this by writing what I wrote on Bluesky today:

"Some authors I understand why we boycott, they were awful people and don't deserve my money. But if we look for Perfect human beings who write books, we'll soon run out of choices and authors. To error is human, after all."

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