IRISH author Sally Rooney has said she will use the residual payments from BBC adaptations of her novels to continue supporting Palestine Action.
Writing in the Irish Times, Rooney condemned the proscription of the group as a terrorist organisation and doubled down on her support following over 500 arrests made at a London demonstration calling for the ban to be overturned.
The BBC’s 2020 adaptation of her novel, Normal People, became an international success and led to the later adaptation of Conversations With Friends in 2022.
In her column, she wrote: “I too support Palestine Action. If this makes me a ‘supporter of terror’ under UK law, so be it.
“My books, at least for now, are still published in Britain, and are widely available in bookshops and even supermarkets.
“In recent years the UK’s state broadcaster has also televised two fine adaptations of my novels, and therefore regularly pays me residual fees.
“I want to be clear that I intend to use these proceeds of my work, as well as my public platform generally, to go on supporting Palestine Action and direct action against genocide in whatever way I can.”
Prior to the official proscription, Rooney told the High Court she would “continue to be a committed supporter” of Palestine Action regardless of whether the ban was enforced or not.
“If the British state considers this ‘terrorism’, then perhaps it should investigate the shady organisations that continue to promote my work and fund my activities, such as WH Smith and the BBC”, she continued in her column.
The ambassador for the state of Palestine in Ireland, Dr Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid, voiced her support for the County Mayo author’s comments on Monday.
“Sally Rooney is using her voice to call out international law and human rights violations in Palestine”, she said.
“I hope these calls result in practical actions that will stop the horrors we’re witnessing carried out by Israel in Palestine; to stop the genocide and forced displacement and end the Israeli occupation.”
The BBC previously said that Rooney has never been a member of staff within the organisation, and that what novelists say or do with money previously received was not a matter for them.
A BBC spokesperson said: “Matters relating to proscribed organisations are for the relevant authorities.”
