Wednesday, March 20, 2024
Jewish film festival in Canada latest event to be canceled over ‘security concerns’
Concerts, book talks and other cultural events are increasingly being canceled because of security concerns about protests over Israel's war in Gaza.
The Playhouse Cinema in Hamilton, Ontario, about 40 miles from Toronto, became the latest venue to call off a Jewish-themed event when it announced Tuesday that the annual Hamilton Jewish Film Festival would not be held in the theater as scheduled in April.
The festival is sponsored by the local Jewish federation. "After receiving numerous security and safety related emails, phone calls, and social media messages, the Playhouse Cinema reached a difficult decision to postpone the Hamilton Jewish Federation's venue rental," the theater said on X. Owners of the theater did not respond to emailed requests for comment but said online that the theater's mission is "to be a welcome home to a variety of cultural groups."
The federation said in a statement it was "outraged" that the event was canceled due to a "small number of complaints and threatening emails objecting to the fact that Israeli films are included in this year's line-up." The festival program included a thriller about Holocaust denial, The Man in the Basement, and The Boy, about life on the Israel-Gaza border, made by an Israeli filmmaker who was murdered in Hamas' attacks in Israel on Oct. 7. The federation promised to stage the festival later this year in its own newly renovated facility.
The federation said complaints received by the theater included "claims by a few individuals that any film produced in Israel is a form of 'Zionist propaganda.'" Canceling the festival in response to such charges, the federation said, is "prioritizing the will of antisemites over an apolitical cultural festival that stands for artistic excellence and integrity."
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