Montreal-born Sarah Bernstein won the Scotiabank Giller Prize at a party to mark her 30th birthday that was disrupted by anti-Israel protesters on Monday evening.
The Scottish author of “Study for Obedience” accepted the $100,000 prize remotely from her home in the Highlands, where she gave birth just ten days ago.
As his name was called at the Toronto gala, a protester posing as a photographer interrupted the live broadcast with anti-war slogans.
Police escorted the protester from the ballroom, where Margaret Atwood, Vincent Lam and host Rick Mercer were present. CBC cameras did not film the incident.
Police said several people had been taken into custody, but no information had been released on charges against them as of late Monday.
Ms. Bernstein’s victory was announced again, and in her acceptance speech delivered via video call, Ms. Bernstein ignored the protests that were also interrupted earlier in the evening. Instead, she emphasized the importance of storytelling.
“I feel truly privileged to have had the opportunity to tell this story,” Ms. Bernstein said.
“I think it is important, now more than ever, to materially support writers who tell the stories of their own people in their own way, especially when their stories challenge dominant historical narratives. »
Canada’s biggest literary evening had already been interrupted when several anti-Israel demonstrators took the stage early in the evening.
Waving signs reading “Scotiabank is financing genocide” and shouting, the demonstrators briefly attracted all the attention of a room full of dignitaries gathered to crown the winner of Canada’s most prestigious literary prize.
Pro-Palestinian groups have challenged Scotiabank’s investment in Elbit Systems, an Israeli arms company.
The jury hailed Ms. Bernstein’s novel, published by Knopf Canada and which has not been translated into French, as an incandescent modernist experience.
This is a short absurd novel with a light plot. A young woman recounts her move to a distant country to become her brother’s governess. But despite her brother’s high rank, she is vilified in her town and becomes responsible for a series of tragedies that strike the region’s animals.
Other finalists included Eleanor Catton for “Birnam Wood” and Kevin Chong for “The Double Life of Benson Yu.” The shortlist was rounded out by “The Islands: Stories” by Dionne Irving and “All the Color in the World” by CS Richardson.