September 13,
2024
More than 700
members of a major Hollywood union have demanded their association take a stand
to protect pro-Palestinian voices from being blacklisted in the industry.
Oscar-winning actor Susan Sarandon was dropped from by her talent agency
after she spoke at a pro-Palestine rally (Getty Images via AFP)
In an open
letter released on Wednesday, actors and entertainment professionals called on
the leadership of the Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television
and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) to issue a public statement condemning Israel’s
ongoing bombardment of the Gaza Strip as well as the industry's
"McCarthyist repression of members who acknowledge Palestinian
suffering".
“We... demand
[our leadership]… to speak out against the targeting and killing of innocent
Palestinian civilians, health workers, and our journalist colleagues... and to
eliminate any doubt of our solidarity with workers, artists, and oppressed
people worldwide,” read the statement, whose signatories include Mark Ruffalo,
Cynthia Nixon, Common, Susan Sarandon, Riz Ahmed and Rosie O’Donnell.
The letter adds
that SAG-AFTRA shared a statement condemning the 7 October Hamas-led attacks on
Israel, but has "remained silent" despite Israel's "clear
violations of human rights and Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian
land and lives".
Several
Hollywood celebrities have come under pressure or been dropped by studios and
agencies for criticising Israel's assault on the Gaza Strip.
Last November,
Mexican actor Melissa Barrera was fired from the Scream franchise for her
social media posts criticising Israel's bombardment of Gaza, which the
production company, Spyglass Media Group, said were “antisemitic”.
She had posted
regularly about the war on her account, including resharing a post accusing
Israel of “genocide and ethnic cleansing”.
The same day,
Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon was dropped by her talent agency after she
spoke at a pro-Palestine rally where she said people were “stepping away from
brainwashing” about the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Members of the
entertainment industry have said that they were being "penalised" for
speaking in support of Palestinians.
'Not in my
union's name'
Union members
said they made several attempts to engage with the union leadership on crafting
a statement together, but those efforts were ignored, according to the
Hollywood Reporter.
Gabriel
Kornbluh, a SAG-AFTRA board member and strike captain, criticised the union
leadership, saying its inaction undermines the solidarity built during last
year’s months-long strike.
“I’m losing
faith in President [Fran] Drescher’s ability to lead our union down an
equitable path," he said.
“As a Jewish
member, I say ‘not in my name’ to Israel’s war crimes and ‘not in my union’s
name.’”
Middle East Eye
reached out to Drescher and SAG-AFTRA for comment, but did not receive a
response by the time of publication.
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