Palestinians: Boycott Toronto Film festival over Tel Aviv spotlight
Dozens of Palestinian filmmakers, writers and artists protest outside the offices of the Canadian representative in West Bank.
By Haaretz Service and The Associated Press Tags: Israel news Tel AvivPalestinian artists on Thursday called for a boycott of the Toronto International Film Festival for screening a series of movies about Tel Aviv.
The spotlight on the city is part of the Festival's City to City event, which this year celebrates Tel Aviv's centennial.
Dozens of Palestinian filmmakers, writers and artists protested outside the offices of the Canadian representative in the West Bank town of Ramallah.
Protesters earlier handed the Canadian mission a letter condemning the festival for showcasing Tel Aviv.
Around 1000 international artists and activists have also signed a letter in protest against the festival, which opened on Thursday, claiming that Tel Aviv was built on violence, ignoring the "suffering of thousands of former residents and descendants."
The "Toronto Declaration" was drafted by an ad-hoc committee including culture critic Naomi Klein and director John Greyson, who announced their protest over the homage to Tel Aviv.
Among those who've signed their names to the list are actors Jane Fonda, Danny Glover and Eve Ensler, as well as author Alice Walker, filmmaker Ken Loach and theorist Slavoj Zizek.
Recently the Israeli filmmaker Udu Aloni, one of the letter's initiators, sent a public appeal to enlist Israeli film Duo Gal Uchovsky and Eitan Fuchs, whose film "The bubble" will be screened at the festival.
Two-time Oscar winner Rabbi Marvin Hier, who founded the Simon Wiesenthal Center, called the declaration "an attack on the heart and soul of Israel."
"People who support letters like this are people who do not support a two-state solution," he was quoted as saying on Hilton's blog.
"By calling into question the legitimacy of Tel Aviv, they are supporting a one-state solution, which means the destruction of the State of Israel. I applaud the organizers of the festival for celebrating on the 100th anniversary of Tel Aviv. If every city in the Middle East would be as culturally diverse, as open to freedom of expression as Tel Aviv is, then peace would long have come to the Middle East."
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both of which are exceptional films
is it beckose you where not invited in the first place? Jane the wars of Vietnam is over so is yours carier???
While people are there I pray they dont blow the place up..
The Toronto Declaration does not condemn the Film Festival for "screening a series of movies about Tel Aviv," as the article implies. In fact, it specifically encourages the screening of the Israeli films; it objects only to the political context in which the festival's organizers have placed them, celebrating Tel Aviv in terms that completely ignore the occupation. This is precisely the approach now encouraged by official Israeli propaganda, and its evil lies not in what is shown but in what is deliberately omitted. In this case, no reference is made to the assault on Jaffa in 1948, the expulsion of its Arab population, Tel Aviv's incorporation of the formerly Arab city, to say nothing of the post-1967 occupation, the most recent devastation of Gaza, etc. Try to imagine a celebration of Berlin's last hundred years without a single reference to Nazism or the Holocaust and you'll have a better idea what the controversy is about.
Israeli-American author and blogger Naomi Regan has informed me that local Toronto Jews and supporters bought up all seats just 5 days after Hanoi Jane and friends called for the boycott. So, the boycott has already failed, you can relax, Palestinians.
of the birth of a Palestinian state.
movie at Toronto film Festival.Klein conceived and organized this Boycott. Haaretz calls Naomi Klein a "culture critic" SHE IS NOT.N Klein was born in 1970,in Montreal is a Canadian,author and activist known for her political analyses and criticism of corporate globalization.Criticsm is acceptable provided it's fair.Klein rants against capitalism.Her family background:Naomi was raised in a Jewish family with a history of left-wing activism. Her parents moved to Montreal, Canada from the USA in 1967 as war resisters to the Vietnam War.Her mother,documentary film-maker Bonnie Sherr Klein,is known for her pornography film Not a Love Story.Her paternal grandparents were Communists.Parents far left.Klein's father grew up,frustrated by "difficult and frightening to be the child of Communists",Husband Avi Lewis comes from very leftist party.Her books:"No Logo",The Shock Doctrine:The Rise of Disaster Capitalism".Leads Independent Jewish Voices (Canada)12 members!Occupied Israeli consulate!
What is a boycott going to acchieve? And Tel Aviv is a genuinely Jewish/Israeli city, built on empty land. Why not celebrate it? If the theme was '42 years of illegal settlements', then the boycott would have made more sense...
I was confused as to whether the Palestinians actually wanted peace- thanks for the clarification
Just a newer version of Germany's book burners. STOP SPONSORING TERRORISTS, IGNORE THEM.
good riddance...who needs those scumbags?
Most tourists to Israel visit the charming, quaint Arab city of Jaffa adjacent to Tel Aviv but never think about the contrast. Jaffa had been the major Arab city in that part of pre-state Israel since it was re-established after the eathquake arround 1500. In contrast, Tel Aviv was founded in the 1920s by Jews seeking to move out of Jaffa. Now, the Arabs envy Tel Aviv, as a modern Western city, while Jaffa remains as it was 150 years ago. Rather than economics, alot of the conflict is fueled by emotions like envy, jealousy, pride, honor and shame.
What a stupid protest. There is no city on the planet that has not, in some way, been built on violence and exploitation. Boycotting the film festival on the basis claimed is stupid. The appropriate response, if Palestinians are unhappy with the film festival's choice of Tel Aviv, would be the production of a film depicting the cost of Tel Aviv's creation to Palestinians. Show the other side of the story. Don't try and suppress the truth about Tel Aviv is today.
Dozens of Palestinian filmmakers, writers and artists as well as Jane Fonda, Danny Glover, Eve Ensler, Alice Walker, Ken Loach protest the existence of Tel Aviv! It is reasonably to believe that these people have no interest in a two state solution and simply want to see Israel destroyed. No Jew from Meretz to the religious parties fails to get the message.
I'll be at the Toronto Film Festival and I'm bringing as many people as I can!!
once again take the negative road towards relationships with their neighbors. The message to this Israeli is fairly simple, on the human side of it: We don't want you here, even when you celebrate 100 years of a city built entirely on sand dunes, which is why we have not been willing to recognize Israel's right to exist as the Jewish state, despite UN resolutions. And when we have a chance we shall wipe you off the face of earth, all of you. Sad. Very sad indeed, but realistically this is why Israelis refuse to take any additional chances towards peace with people who appear to hate our very existence.
This is wonderful news. Now I can attend the Toronto Film Festival know that I won't bump into Jane Fonda or Palestinians. Happy day!!! And of course, every Jew and pro-Israel supporter will show up to counter the boycott, as we did when it was encouraged to boycott Israeli wines - it took only a couple of hours to sell them all.
"Two-time Oscar winner Rabbi Marvin Hier..." For what? Best performance of a pious man? Best bad actor?