In a controversial swirl of politics and protest, Sara Fenske Bahat has thrown in the towel as the interim CEO of the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts amid ongoing pro-Palestine protests and a subsequent boycott rocking the museum. The institution, situated within a stone's throw of the area where the George Floyd protests gripped San Francisco, has been facing its storm since mid-February.

Bahat's resignation came after artists vandalized their works at a February 15 event with banners demanding a ceasefire and an end to "funding genocide," according to SFist. The uproar led to the shutting down of the galleries, a move that Bahat oversaw before stepping down. Facing significant backlash, she expressed in a resignation letter, "The vitriolic and antisemitic backlash directed at me personally since that night nearly three weeks ago has made being here intolerable. I no longer feel safe in our own space, including due to the actions of some of our own employees." These sentiments were echoed in a posting on LinkedIn.

The resignation does not seem to signal the end of the center's troubles. San Francisco Supervisor Hillary Ronen has called for a hearing into the shutdown of the galleries, saying, "Instead of making room for perspectives of these artists, YBCA, which promoted the exhibit as showcasing diverse voices, responded alarmingly by shutting down the exhibit." She highlighted the impact this had on the community, including lost educational and cultural opportunities for high school students and the public at large, as reported by SFist.

Amid ongoing scrutiny, the YBCA remains closed, with a hearing by Supervisor Ronen tentatively scheduled for April. Details around the potential hearing and what it might mean for the future of the embattled arts center remain vague.