Celebrities are outraged over Israel’s killing of protesters in Gaza.
At the Cannes Film Festival in southern France actor Benicio del Toro joined about a dozen Palestinians for a minute of silence, others tweeted their grief and frustrations.
As she walks the red carpet for "Solo", French-Lebanese #actress Manal Issa holds a sign reading "Stop the Attack on #Gaza" as she walks the famous red carpet, in #Cannes, during 71st edition of the Cannes #Film #Festival in Cannes. #France #Palestine #Cannes2018 #Film #cinema pic.twitter.com/3PAMRWCZcg
— Ammar ABD RABBO (@AmmarParis) May 16, 2018
This year, Palestine has a tent with its flag raised for the first time at Cannes. Palestinian filmmaker May Odeh told Reuters, “It’s really crazy to be here with the films, with the filmmakers, talking about our future plans while our kids and families are suffering from the Israeli attack on them.”
On social media Gigi Hadid, Bette Midler, Morgan Freeman, Ava DuVernay, and Judd Apatow to name a few, tweeted about Israel’s use of live-fire on Palestinian protesters in Gaza that left 61 dead including 8 children.
— Gigi Hadid (@GiGiHadid) May 15, 2018
Hadid posted screen shots of Al Jazeera’s coverage alongside an image of the Nakba with text written by a relative,
“Almost One Million Palestinians were violently forced out of their country and never allowed back to Palestine. The Hadid family was amongst them and they fled in fear to Syria where they became refugees.”
Actor Morgan Freeman took aim at President Donald Trump:
43 dead. Any words for them, Donald?
Our peace & prosperity as Americans is completely in jeopardy at the hands of an idiot following through on moronic campaign promises.
cc: @realDonaldTrump @DonaldJTrumpJr @IvankaTrump @jaredkushner https://t.co/hAmA0HZFQl
— Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) May 14, 2018
The conversation about Israel and Gaza has even pierced into mainstream outlets beyond the network news. Yesterday morning New York City’s Hip Hop station Hot 97’s morning show, “Ebro in the Morning,” dedicated an entire segment to yesterday’s demonstration in Gaza where the two blasted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump:
Ebro: “Sometimes it isn’t just as easy as pick a side. Sometimes the place that you live, or the thing that you love is just wrong. Straight up, and being evil. ”
Rosenberg: “And if you were in another country and you felt you had a connection to the U.S., but under Trump’s regime would you be telling people, ‘oh my god, I love everything the U.S. does?’ No. You’d be like yo, I don’t know what’s going on over there.
Netanyahu is a bad dude, and he’s been bad for a long time.”
Ebro: “And he’s under investigation right now for war crimes and some corruption.
Rosenberg: This is a guy who when Yitzhak Rabin was working on the peace process with Arafat, which was potentially, should have been one of the most important things to have ever happened, he was calling Rabin a Nazi for making peace with Arafat back then. that’s who Netanyahu is, that’s who he’s always been. He’s always been a crazy right-winger and now he’s running the show.
Ebro: “And a war monger”
Rosenberg: “And a war monger. And now he’s got a friend who is perfect because Trump loves violence. Wherever there can be violence, wherever there can be oppression towards brown people and Muslim people Trump is for it.”
How do you feel about what is going on in Israel right now? #EbroInTheMorning
Listen Live: https://t.co/ME7lWzO63I
— HOT 97 (@HOT97) May 15, 2018
Here are tweets from other celebrities that have spoken out:
So these photos are meant to be an excuse for murdering them. I just want to be clear about the purpose. If Hamas uses a disabled child then the logical response is to murder them? What does it feel like to harden yourself to the point where human life has lost its meaning? https://t.co/6UxDjX8KJq
— Judd Apatow (@JuddApatow) May 15, 2018
State sponsored terrorism courtesy of your good friends Israel & America. Happy Monday! pic.twitter.com/AKIa4Ud0NG
— vino valentino (@VicMensa) May 14, 2018
I’m glad Ivanka and Jared could take time away from their busy schedules of not being qualified to represent the US to go represent the US, and celebrate moving the capital in exchange for the adelson’s donations, while 50+ Palestinians have been killed.
— Chelsea Handler (@chelseahandler) May 14, 2018
Fifty-two people die in protest over moving American Embassy to Jerusalem. Thanks, asshole! Your uninformed and demented actions have consequences! Don’t you get it? Those people had families too!
— Bette Midler (@BetteMidler) May 14, 2018
58 Palestinians killed by Israeli gunfire, 1,113 wounded. “What a glorious day” Netanyahu declared. Regardless of your position, that’s a heavy devaluation of Palestinian life. https://t.co/sCid9CfiR0
— Jeffrey Wright (@jfreewright) May 15, 2018
NFL free agent Oday Aboushi retweeted:
Fascinating use of the passive. Maybe they all had heart attacks. https://t.co/GFG7CvJHUy
— Marc Lamont Hill (@marclamonthill) May 14, 2018
“A United Nations anti-discrimination committee on Monday called on Israel to stop using ‘disproportionate force’ against Palestinian protesters in Gaza, stating it was ‘gravely concerned’ those killed posed no imminent threat when they were shot.” https://t.co/JSAcPixcGI
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) May 14, 2018
I’m the child of Holocaust Survivors. This kind of genocidal violence in Israel must be called out for what it is. This is totally unacceptable. Occupation is a crime. Our heritage should forbid us from engaging in this horrendous violence. We must address the cycle and end it https://t.co/jR3u1VkVu0
— Josh Fox EndFossilFuels (@joshfoxfilm) May 14, 2018
That’s especially great that Gigi Hadid spoke up. She’s got 9.2 million followers on Twitter. Netanyahu has only 1.4 million on his personal account and 0.6 million on his PM of Israel account. Gal Gadot has 1.8 million.
I applaud all these brave celebrities for openly criticizing this massacre, risking their careers as they do so. The world needs to hear more. I am still waiting for the others to speak out. Just like the Congress, they do not want to jeopardize their jobs and lucrative roles. It is sad when a nation is controlled to this extent by a foreign nation and it’s lobbies here. In the US you can easily criticize the president, but no one dares to criticize the zionists and their terrible crimes.
Until our congress is able to remove those shackles, and reject the shekels, we will always be in this status quo.
Tonight is the 75th anniversary of the legendary “Dambusters” raid in 1943. I think another dam has just been breached.
I’m really impressed by Hot 97’s honest discussion of the issue. In that small 15 minute conversation the Hip Hop radio station featured more honesty about Israel and Palestine than mainstream American media – CNN, MSNBC, FOX and the NYTs – feature in a whole decade of their reporting. And this is true even though news isn’t Hot 97’s main concern! Please be inspired MSM.
Ebro: “Sometimes it isn’t just as easy as pick a side. Sometimes the place that you live, or the thing that you love is just wrong. Straight up, and being evil. ”
Reminded me of something Joe Sacco said about Gaza. “I find it very difficult to be objective when there is a clear case of a people being oppressed. I’m not sure what objective means in a situation like that. I would rather be honest about vwhat”s going on ”
In a lot of Israeli discussion about the Holocaust people wonder why onlookers did nothing. Why do Israelis today do nothing ?