The Pulitzer Prize-winning fiction writer Jhumpa Lahiri has declined to accept an award from the Noguchi Museum in Queens next month in disapproval of its new ban on political dress for its staff, which led to the firings of three employees who had worn kaffiyehs to signal solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

“Jhumpa Lahiri has chosen to withdraw her acceptance of the 2024 Isamu Noguchi Award in response to our updated dress code policy,” according to a statement emailed by the museum on Wednesday.

“We respect her perspective and understand that this policy may or may not align with everyone’s views,” the statement said of Lahiri. “We remain committed to our core mission of advancing the understanding and appreciation of Isamu Noguchi’s art and legacy while upholding our values of inclusivity and openness.”

The museum, founded nearly 40 years ago by Noguchi, a Japanese American designer and sculptor, announced last month that during their working hours employees could not wear clothing or accessories that expressed “political messages, slogans or symbols”.

The policy, which does not apply to visitors, was instituted after several staff members had, over a period of months, often worn kaffiyehs — scarves associated with Palestinians — for what one fired employee termed “cultural reasons”. The museum defended the prohibition earlier this month, saying in a statement that “such expressions can unintentionally alienate segments of our diverse visitorship”. A significant majority of staffers signed a petition opposing the rule.

Lahiri and Lee Ufan, a Korean-born minimalist painter, sculptor and poet, were to have received the Isamu Noguchi Award at the museum’s autumn benefit gala next month. Ufan could not be reached for comment on Wednesday, but is still scheduled to receive the award, the museum said.

Lahiri, who was born in London, won the 2000 Pulitzer for fiction for her debut, the collection Interpreter of Maladies, and has published several books of fiction and non-fiction in English and Italian.

New York Times News Service