Musician and artist Laurie Anderson is set to receive a Lifetime Achievement honor at the Grammy Awards on Sunday ‘The real question is, why is this question even being asked?’ Anderson said in a released statement regarding the university’s questioning of her political stance DUBAI: US musician and artist Laurie Anderson has withdrawn from a professorship at Germany’s Folkwang University of the Arts over a 2021 letter she signed in support of Palestine. For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram @arabnews.lifestyle The artist was a signatory on an open “letter against apartheid“ written by Palestinian artists in 2021 that followed a new wave of violence that erupted in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Anderson was set to begin the Pina Bausch visiting professorship on April 1. In a press release issued by the university, representatives of the academic establishment said “discussion and dialogue are indeed key pillars in the general philosophy of the Folkwang University of the Arts. However, art, culture and science should remain places where the boundaries of dialogue are open and expansive as a matter of principle, and where contentious issues are kept in check. The university strictly rejects any form of antisemitism, misanthropy or racism.” In the same release, Anderson said: “For me, the question is not whether my political views have changed. The real question is, why is this question even being asked? Against this background, I am withdrawing from the project.” Anderson is set to receive a Lifetime Achievement honor at the Grammy Awards on Sunday.