The Polari Prize has this year received a huge backlash following their longlisting of self-declared TERF author John Boyne. Boyne’s inclusion and his anti-trans views caused many of the other longlisted authors to withdraw their books from the running and several of the Prize’s judges to drop out.
In a statement issued earlier this week (18 August), organisers confirmed that 2025’s Polari Prize had been cancelled.
Their statement explained: “Polari is part of the LGBTQ+ writing and reading community and for fifteen years, trans, gender non-conforming and non-binary people have been part of that community – at our events, on our judging panels, on our long and short lists and among out prize winners. This community to inclusion remains unchanged. Polari is not and has never been a trans-exclusionary organisation. These are not our values and we condemn all forms of transphobia.
“What was supposed to be a celebration of exceptional LGBTQ+ literature has been overshadowed by hurt and anger, which has been painful and distressing for all concerned and we apologise to everyone who has been affected.”
The statement added that discussions have been undertaken with authors, judges, stakeholders and funders about the impact of longlisting Boyne’s novel, and how they can “learn from this experience and move forward.”
The organisers concluded by saying: “We have decided as a result to pause the prize this year while we increase representation of trans and gender non-conforming judges on the panels for all the awards and undertake a governance and management review to include our aims and values and work better to support everyone within our LGBTQ+ Polari community.
“We have already secured strong representation for next year, which we will build on.”
Dr Avi Ben-Zeev, the only trans author on the 2025 longlist and one of the few authors not to withdraw his book from the running explained his choice to remain on the list prior to the Prize’s cancellation. He said that removing himself would feel like “erasing myself,” and that there was “nothing more trans-exclusionary… than to see people like me disappear.”
In a post on Instagram, he added: “We should expect no less from Polari than a zero-tolerance policy towards hate and beliefs that deny human rights, and especially from a prize that has previously done so much good for our collective LGBTQIA+ communities, but which has now let us all down.”
He also called on them “to show true leadership by stating a zero-tolerance TERF policy.”
