JK Rowling’s agent fights back against 'silent boycott' of Jewish writers

(Oct. 19, 2026 / JNS)

A British literary agent has established a publishing outfit to help Jewish authors who he says have been subjected to a “silent boycott” by mainstream U.K. publishers following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza.

Neil Blair established High Line Publishing Studio to help Jewish and Israeli literary figures who are being “shunned.” Blair represents such leading literary lights as JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series.

Blair, who is Jewish, said he was “flabbergasted” when he learned that former Hamas abductee Eli Sharabi, an Oct. 7 attack survivor who spent 491 days in captivity in Gaza, had trouble finding a U.K. publisher for his memoir “Hostage.”

“I’m assuming none of [the publishers] even bothered to read the proposal, as it’s one of the most remarkable books. I think it’s akin to some of the great standout books from the Holocaust, in terms of lessons on how to live one’s life in the face of adversity,” Blair told The Sunday Times.

A small independent publisher eventually picked up Sharabi’s book. Blair said it would have reached more British readers if a bigger one had backed it.

Blair said that the problem originates not with executives, but with junior employees. “Maybe one or two publishers might have some individual prejudice but, generally speaking, the issue is the young employees who could really pass as activists,” he said.

“They think it’s right to demand the company doesn’t publish things they don’t agree with, and they threaten to go on strike or pile on on social media. Perhaps understandably, a lot of editors and publishers go for a quiet life.”

Josh Breslaw, a musician with the band Oi Va Voi, launched a label, Parallel Skies, together with his bandmates after they lost a gig at a Bristol venue. The venue bowed to pressure from activist groups and afterward admitted it made a mistake, saying the group was likely only targeted “because they are a Jewish band performing with an Israeli singer.”

Breslaw told the Times: “I don’t believe most of the music industry ideologically has a position against Jews or a position on the Middle East. I think most of them are, frankly, just intimidated by online hate mobs.

“Part of the problem with the kind of silent boycott we see is that you can’t ever quite put your finger on it. People who ordinarily you would have worked with before, or you might think would be interested, say, ‘No, I’ve got a full schedule at the moment’ or ‘my venue’s too busy,’” he said.

According to a December report, The New Boycott Crisis, put out by the U.K.-based Freedom in the Arts (Fita), there has been a “wave of boycotts” against Jewish artists since the Oct. 7 massacre. “Exclusion may be triggered not by anything they have said or done but by their identity itself. Artists report severe psychological harm, self-censorship, cultural erasure, loss of income and, in several cases, symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress,” the report said.

Dancer and choreographer Rosie Kay, co-founder of Fita, told the Times, “The growth of Jewish-led publishers, record labels and performance platforms is both inspiring and deeply worrying.

“When talented artists believe they need parallel structures simply to work without concealing part of who they are, that tells us something has gone seriously wrong with the arts sector’s promises of inclusion. These initiatives can nurture work, rebuild confidence and bring artists together.

“But the long-term answer cannot be a separate Jewish cultural ecosystem. Jewish and Israeli artists must also be able to participate fully in mainstream British culture without facing political or ideological tests,” she said.

Anti-Jewish boycotting is not limited to the U.K. and has already made itself felt in the United States. On Oct. 1, the Anti-Defamation League released a first-of-its-kind report: “State of the Arts: Advancing Jewish Inclusion in Arts, Entertainment and Culture.” It documents the “systemic exclusion and marginalization of Jewish and Israeli artists across American cultural life.”