Jewish interim CEO of prestigious San Francisco arts center resigns over antisemitism

(JTA) – The Jewish interim CEO of a prestigious arts center in San Francisco is resigning from her position, calling her decision “a direct result” of antisemitism that she has experienced in the wake of a protest by pro-Palestinian artists exhibiting.

In a resignation letter posted on LinkedIn yesterday, Sara Fenske Bahat writes, “While this was long in the cards, in the last few weeks the climate around Israel-Palestine in the Bay Area became untenable.”

The controversy at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, which has drawn criticism from local officials, is the latest in turmoil roiling the arts and culture world since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. Across the country, pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel creatives have taken to increasingly aggressive tactics in their efforts to protest what they characterize as inappropriate support for Israel by institutions with which they are associated.

“The vitriolic and antisemitic backlash directed at me personally since that night nearly three weeks ago has made being here intolerable,” Bahat writes. “I no longer feel safe in our own space, including due to the actions of some of our own employees.”