Salman Rushdie, 78, warned that everyone in the United States is in danger due to escalating political violence, speaking at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah. The author survived a knife attack in August 2022 near a literary conference, an incident that left him partially blind. Rushdie said the attack was part of a larger pattern of violence against culture. He criticized former President Donald Trump’s attacks on universities and media, describing those who lack culture and are ignorant or radical as targeting it. He emphasized that the documentary “Knife” is not a commentary on current events, but its release comes at a time when many feel the risk of violence. The warning follows recent incidents of federal agents killing two Americans in Minneapolis and broader tensions over cultural expression in the U.S. He concluded that those with authoritarian power view culture as an enemy.

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