Let Israeli Artists Tell Their Stories

By: Nick Lieber – Editorial Associate and Analyst, Creative Community For Peace

We at Creative Community For Peace (CCFP) applaud the creators of the London Israeli Film Festival for showcasing “the many voices throughout Israel.” We applaud Curzon Cinemas for standing up for freedom of expression, releasing a principled statement making it clear that they “do not consider booking a festival as any kind of political comment.” Indeed, a festival is not about politics. It is about art.

More than forty “artists, producers, and concerned citizens” have called on cinemas around London to refuse to host the London Israeli Film and Television Festival, claiming that because the festival receives funding from the Israeli government, hosts will be complicit in Israeli government actions.

“Kidon” by Emmanuel Naccache won Best Film at last year’s festival.

Complicit? Supporting the arts is generally accepted as something good – to be commended. So when the Israeli government does something good, such as funding an inclusive and diverse film festival, should the government and the artists be punished for that? If one is to support the artists but not the funding that supports them, who wins? Who loses?

The letter stresses it is not a request to refuse to show films by individual film-makers “but to reject the involvement and financial support of the Israeli state.” But the coalition includes film and TV creators whose projects were repeatedly financed by UK government-backed organizations such as the BBC, the UK Film Council and BFI. If someone has problems with a UK government action, should they be rallying against those organizations continuing to receive government support, or against a film festival that also gets government backing, or a film or TV show that receives that support?

Most states around the world engage in cultural diplomacy, working to reach out to communities around the globe through the arts. If one is opposed to government funding of film, then one would be hard-pressed to participate in any international film festival. If one is merely opposed to Israeli government funding of film, then one is guilty of discrimination and double-standards.

Did this group voice any objection in September 2014 when the Safar Festival of Arab Cinema received funding from the government of the United Arab Emirates? Were the hosting institutions complicit in the UAE’s crackdown on political dissent, its outlawing of political parties, and its official discrimination against women?

Did these citizens simply forget to speak out against government funding of film festivals last month when the 20th annual London Turkish Film Festival received funding from the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism? Were the hosts and participants complicit in the 40-year-old Turkish occupation of Northern Cyprus?

Of course not.

We at Creative Community For Peace, an organization representing prominent members of the entertainment industry devoted to promoting the arts as a means to peace and to countering the cultural boycott of Israel, believe that film is powerful. It is the ultimate story-telling medium, allowing us to step into the shoes of “the other,” to understand their lives, their dreams, and their concerns. One of the greatest barriers to peace in the Middle East has been the inability of the various parties to understand one another. Film can help us get past this barrier. Don’t let it be silenced.

First posted June 18, 2015 on the Times of Israel.

CCFP Staff In Press Release

Alan Parsons Responds to Roger Waters in Exclusive Interview with Creative Community For Peace (CCFP)

The war of words reported by Rolling Stone magazine between former Pink Floyd member Roger Waters and Dark Side of the Moon engineer Alan Parsons, leader of the Alan Parsons Project, isn’t over after all.

Just before his performance in Tel Aviv, Parsons and his band’s Israeli bassist, Guy Erez, sat down for an exclusive interview with Creative Community For Peace (CCFP) to discuss their opinions on the cultural boycott of Israel and the role of music in the world.The cultural boycott campaign singles out Israel, and only Israel, for a cultural boycott. It is known for using tactics that can often border on harassment in an effort to prevent international artists from performing in Israel and Israeli artists from performing abroad.

Some, including Malian musician Salif Keita and English rocker Eric Burdon, have even received threats against their personal safety for agreeing to perform in Israel.

The cultural boycott against Israel is anathema not only to peace but also to artists and artistic freedom.

Roger Waters wrote Parsons a letter containing false and inflammatory information about Israel in an attempt to pressure the band to cancel its February 10 performance in Tel Aviv. Rogers also ignored Parsons’ request to keep their exchange private.

Responding to Waters and the entire Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel, the ten-time Grammy Awards nominee Parsons told CCFP, “It’s totally censorship. I mean, people who follow it would be considered succumbing to censorship. But we didn’t.”

Erez questioned the rationale of Waters’ behavior saying, “My approach to it is why don’t you try and use it in the opposite way? Instead of saying don’t go here and there and play, if Roger Waters really wanted to be a peaceful person, why won’t you take a group of Israeli kids and Palestinian kids and make a camp of making music together. Use the power of music to put people together. But don’t just say, ‘I’m taking a side, don’t share music with the Israeli people.’ Why do the Israeli people or any other people have to get punished even though let’s say you disagree with their government? It’s just something I don’t understand how he even puts it together.”

A veteran rocker with gold and platinum records, Parsons, told CCFP, “The language of music has nothing to do with the language of politics.”

Erez and Parsons went on to share a poignant, personal story of bigotry and loyalty about an instance when a concert venue in Europe sought to exclude Erez on the basis of his nationality. While Erez’s work has appeared in more than 100 movies and TV shows, it would appear that some are unable to see the value of musical talent over politics.

Creative Community For Peace (CCFP) is comprised of prominent members of the entertainment community who believe the arts and music build bridges and oppose the singling out of Israel for a cultural boycott. CCFP’s Anti-Boycott Petition, which has over 28,000 signatories from across the globe, is evidence that there are many around the world who share our message.

CCFP Staff In Press Release

Cyndi Lauper just wants to bring people together

Cyndi Lauper Just Wants to Bring People Together

The iconic singer of “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” performed in Israel earlier this year, stopping to visit a performing arts school and an LGBT center before her show at the Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv.

Creative Community For Peace (CCFP) caught up with Cyndi and asked for her views on the cultural boycott of Israel and what artists’ roles should be.

“I got a [pro-boycott] letter after I already accepted the gig,” she said.

In fact, when news spread of her upcoming performance, she fell under heavy pressure by boycott proponents to renege on her commitment. In an interview for Counterpunch, Roger Waters claimed he wrote her a letter trying to persuade her to cancel. Cyndi continued, “I thought about it, but I wanted to see for myself”.

See for herself, she did. In her brief time in Israel, she got a little taste of the diversity of the tiny democracy in the Middle East.

She visited the Rimon School of Jazz and Contemporary Music in Ramat HaSharon, one of Israel’s premier music schools dedicated not only to turning its students into excellent musicians, but also to using music as a means of cultural exchange, and noted the students from all over the world.

“And I thought that was a good statement, to promote a school that includes everybody,” she declared to CCFP.

She also visited an LGBT center in Tel Aviv. Israel is known for its excellent record on LGBT rights and acceptance, certainly compared to the rest of the Middle East but even relative to western states.

Cyndi is a long-time LGBT rights activist. She wrote the music and lyrics to the Tony Award-winning show “Kinky Boots,” which addresses the problem of acceptance for drag queens. In addition, she has worked to enact hate-crime laws, ran concert tours to promote acceptance of LGBT individuals, and set up a residence for LGBT homeless youth in New York.

“I have tried my whole life to bring people together,” Cyndi told CCFP.

We at CCFP believe that one of the most powerful aspects of art, and one of the greatest gifts of artists, is its ability to build bridges, foster better understanding, encourage dialogue, and hopefully lead toward greater mutual acceptance.

We work in the public discourse and behind-the-scenes to combat the efforts of boycott activists who put intense pressure on artists to cancel their trips to Israel and attempt to use the influence of artists to spread misinformation about the Jewish state. Since our founding in 2011, we have facilitated hundreds of visits to Israel by high-profile artists targeted by these campaigns, including Alanis Morissette, Rihanna, Alicia Keys and, of course, Cyndi Lauper.

We thank Cyndi for her commitment to using her influence as an artist to bring people together.

Watch our exclusive interview with Cyndi Lauper here.

CCFP Staff In Press Release

A special thank you from Scarlett Johansson to YOU

We at Creative Community For Peace (CCFP) believe in the power of art and music to build bridges for peace. We believe that nothing can make peace in the Middle East more elusive than singling out Israel for boycotts.

As many of you know, American actress Scarlett Johansson was recently singled out by anti-Israel boycott activists for her support of the Israeli company SodaStream.

CCFP had been in touch with Scarlett’s representatives since the controversy began. We knew how many of you out there wanted to congratulate and thank her directly for her courageous and principled stand and we facilitated an opportunity to do so by receiving the permission of her publicist to provide you with his email and posting it on our Facebook page.

Thousands and thousands of you rose to the occasion and CCFP cannot express our thanks deeply enough. And we’re not the only ones. We have been given a note from Mr. Marcel Pariseau, Scarlett Johansson’s publicist, thanking her fans for their support. This note of appreciation is from Scarlett to all of you:

Scarlett would like to extend her most sincere thanks to the many thousands of people who have supported her these past weeks. Your emails, comments, and tweets have been truly overwhelming and inspiring. It has been wonderful to receive messages from people all over the world who firmly believe that peace is possible.And a big thank you to Creative Community For Peace for building a bridge between Scarlett and her fans. Marcel Pariseau. TRUE PUBLIC RELATIONS

An artist raising her voice for peace is a powerful thing indeed. And that’s exactly what Scarlett did.

She accepted the position as spokeswoman for SodaStream not only because the company’s home-carbonation device is healthier and better for the environment than bottled soda, but also because the company is a model of peaceful coexistence — employing Israeli Jews, Israeli Arabs, and Palestinian Arabs.

In addition to coming under fire from activists, she also came under fire from Oxfam International, an organization working to fight poverty around the world, for whom she had been a global ambassador for eight years.

Oxfam does some amazing work and Scarlett is rightfully proud of all she has done to contribute to the eradication of world hunger. However, some Oxfam affiliates around the world also channel part of their resources into organizations which single out Israel for boycotts.

Scarlett’s principled decision to stand by SodaStream and part ways with Oxfam has been a victory for Israelis, Palestinians, and peace-loving people all over the world.

But it’s just one victory. There is much left to be done and CCFP can use your help.

Sign our Anti-Boycott Petition!

Tell the many hundreds of international artists who perform in and visit Israel every year that you support their decision and that we must not allow Israel’s detractors to politicize art.

Like us on Facebook!

We will keep you up-to-date on artists performing in Israel, cooperation between Israeli and international artists, boycott activists’ attempts to intimidate artists into canceling, and much more.