Statement by Noam Chomsky and Vijay Prashad on the Tata Lit Fest
Noam Chomsky and Vijay Prashad issue a statement following the abrupt
cancellation of the dialogue that was scheduled to be held as part of
the Mumbai (Tata) Lit Fest on Friday
November 20, 2020
<https://peoplesdispatch.org/2020/11/20/statement-by-noam-chomsky-and-vijay-prashad-on-the-tata-lit-fest/>
by Noam Chomsky <https://peoplesdispatch.org/author/noam-chomsky/>,
Vijay Prashad <https://peoplesdispatch.org/author/vijay/>
In September 2020, the Mumbai (Tata) Lit Fest invited Noam Chomsky and
Vijay Prashad to participate in a dialogue about Noam’s important new
book /Internationalism or Extinction/
<https://www.routledge.com/Internationalism-or-Extinction/Chomsky-Derber-Moodliar-Shannon/p/book/9780367430580>.
Both of us agreed to hold this dialogue because we believe that the
themes in the book – the dangers of nuclear war, climate catastrophe,
erosion of democracy – require the widest circulation and debate. We
were pleased to join even though we had reservations about the sponsor
of the event.
The dialogue was set to occur on Friday, November 20 at 9 pm Indian
Standard Time. The advertisement was circulated and the team at Mumbai
(Tata) Lit Fest had confirmed all the details. The last communication
came in at 9 am Indian Standard Time on November 20 to remind us of the
zoom link and other details. Then, out of nowhere, near 1 pm Indian
Standard Time, we received an email which said, cryptically, ‘I am sorry
to inform you that due to unforeseen circumstances, we have to cancel
your talk today’. Further inquires informed us to be in touch with the
festival’s director, Anil Dharker. No communication has been established
thus far with Mr. Dharker.
Noam’s book is based on a lecture that he delivered in Boston in 2016,
in which he warns that human beings must act to end various calamities.
Of nuclearism, Noam writes specifically, ‘Either we will bring it to an
end, or it’s likely to bring us to an end’. The urgency of these matters
cannot be dismissed. In conversation with the actor Wallace Shawn, which
followed the lecture, Noam speaks about the perils of public discourse.
‘“Objectivity” has a meaning’, he notes. ‘It means reporting accurately
and fairly what’s going on /inside/ the Beltway, White House, and
Congress’. In other words, what is being said by the elites is notable
and must be given judicious care by the media owned by large
corporations, but what is said outside those circles must be ignored or
disparaged. Since we do not know why Tata and Mr. Dharker decided to
cancel our session, we can only speculate and ask simply: was this a
question of censorship?
What were the themes that we were going to develop in the panel? We were
going to talk about the broad issues that threaten the planet, but then
also talk about the specific role of countries such as India and
corporations such as the Tatas.
Regarding India, the issue of the erosion of democracy is a serious
matter, with the passage of bills
<https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kozhikode/caa-npr-and-nrc-part-of-a-malevolent-plan-teesta-setalvad/articleshow/73291363.cms>
such as the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the vast sums
<https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/why-indias-election-is-among-the-worlds-most-expensive/articleshow/68367262.cms?from=mdr>
of money that have now suffocated the voices of the hundreds of millions
of impoverished Indian voters as examples of the problem; the issue of
warfare is significant, with the Indian government participating in the
highly destabilizing
<https://peoplesdemocracy.in/2020/1011_pd/jaws-quad> Quadrilateral
Security Dialogue with Australia, Japan, and the United States.
Regarding the Tatas, we wanted to put on record a few facts that should
lead sensitive people to understand what the Tata company has underneath
its fingernails: a role in the killing
<http://adivasiresurgence.com/2017/09/20/as-one-rides-along-the-roads-of-developed-industrial-hub-of-kalinga-nagar-the-bright-lights-of-tata-steel-plant-are-soon-overshadowed-by-a-memorial-pillar-at-ambagadia-village-the/>
of /adivasis/ who were peacefully protesting the construction of a Tata
steel factory in Kalinga Nagar, Odisha in 2006; the use of private
militias to terrorize
<https://frontline.thehindu.com/other/letters/article30179521.ece> the
population for a planned Tata steel factory in Jagdalpur, Chattisgarh,
about ten years ago; the use of Tata Advanced Systems weapons
<https://businessindia.co/magazine/gunning-for-self-reliance> by the
Indian forces against the people of Kashmir; and Tata steel’s release of
hexavalent chromium into water sources has created
<https://thewire.in/rights/odisha-chromite-valley-adivasi-tata-mine> the
fourth most polluted place on the planet in Sukinda, Odisha. These are
just a few examples of the atrocious way in which the Tata corporation
has brought levels of extinction to the peoples of the planet.
We wanted to talk about how governments such as those led by the
Bharatiya Janata Party and corporations such as the Tatas are hastening
humanity towards a deeper and deeper crisis.
The Tatas do not own the platform of the Mumbai Lit Fest, which began a
decade ago outside their sponsorship. We wanted to appear at this
platform in the spirit of open discussion to hold our dialogue about
extinction and internationalism, about the darkest part of our human
story and the brightest sparks of hope that shine in our world.
It is with regret that we could not hold our discussion at the Mumbai
Lit Fest, now owned and operated by the Tata Corporation. We will
shortly announce a venue and a date for our dialogue on the pressing
issues of our time.
Noam Chomsky
Vijay Prashad
20 November 2020.
On 11/20/2020 8:34 PM, Michael Yates wrote:
It is sad to know that Noam Chomsky has agreed to participate in a
literary event sponsored by a brutal and vicious Indian-centered
corporation, the Tata Group. If I live as long as he has lived, I hope
I will be contemplating my life and getting ready for death. But never
doing anything as ugly as this.
https://countercurrents.org/2020/11/an-appeal-to-prof-noam-chomsky-to-boycott-tata-literature-event/
<https://countercurrents.org/2020/11/an-appeal-to-prof-noam-chomsky-to-boycott-tata-literature-event/>
<https://countercurrents.org/2020/11/an-appeal-to-prof-noam-chomsky-to-boycott-tata-literature-event/>
Citizens Appeal Noam Chomsky To Boycott Tata Literature Event, He Says
He'll Participate | Countercurrents
<https://countercurrents.org/2020/11/an-appeal-to-prof-noam-chomsky-to-boycott-tata-literature-event/>
Hope you and your family are keeping well and safe physically in such
trying times. We are writing to you after having just discovered that
you are scheduled to participate in the Tata Lit Live ...
countercurrents.org
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