The foundation did not say why it was ending its partnership with Scotiabank, and its executive director said she would not be making any further comments
The Giller Foundation ended its relationship with its main sponsor Scotiabank on Monday, following a prolonged pressure campaign by anti-Israel activists, who are still calling for the organization to drop additional sponsors.
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The foundation did not say why it was ending its partnership with Scotiabank, which helped grow its prestigious literary prize to $100,000, but anti-Israel protesters have taken issue with the bank’s investment in Elbit Systems, an Israeli manufacturer of drone systems and other defence technologies.
“We are indebted to Scotiabank for their exceptional commitment over the past two decades,” Giller Foundation executive director Elana Rabinovitch told National Post in a written statement. “As the Giller Foundation embarks on the next stage of its journey, it remains committed to celebrating and promoting Canadian literature.”
When asked to speak in greater detail on Tuesday, Rabinovitch told the Post, “I won’t be making any further comments.”
Scotiabank told other media that the bank has no comment.
Ian Brodie, a University of Calgary professor and author who served as chief of staff under former prime minister Stephen Harper, called the move “disappointing” in a post on X.
“Scotiabank’s sponsorship of literary arts is admirable,” he wrote.
The Giller Prize has been a political flashpoint since Hamas invaded Israel on October 7. Barely a month after the atrocities, a November 2023 award ceremony was disrupted by anti-Israel protesters carrying signs saying, “Scotiabank funds genocide.”
“One sponsor down. Two to go,” the group pledged in its Monday statement.
CanLit says Azrieli has invested in a large Israeli bank with ties to supporting settlements in disputed territories, while Indigo has been accused of directly supporting and funding the Israeli army through its work with the HESEG Foundation, which was co-founded by Reisman and her husband, Gerry Schwartz.
“The statement in the Globe about what the HESEG Foundation funds was totally incorrect and we appreciate (the Globe’s) full and swift retraction,” Reisman said.
“Notwithstanding the mistruth that some people have tried to perpetrate consistently for well over a year, HESEG does not and never did fund the IDF,” the Indigo founder added, noting the foundation funds “scholarships for students who have been accepted to university and either have no family or whose family are unable to provide financial support.”
The prestigious Giller Prize was established in 1994 by Jack Rabinovitch, Elana’s father, as a namesake for his late wife, journalist Doris Giller.
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