The Shift: Palestine at the NBA All-Star Game

Last month, FAIR reported that mainstream coverage of Gaza has plummeted ever since President Trump claimed that the war was over.

“Gaza is at least as newsworthy as it was before the ceasefire deal was signed,” wrote Julie Hollar. “The general US media decision to back off covering an ongoing genocide, apparently because Donald Trump declared the conflict over, is both cowardly and complicit.”

The media might have lost interest in the carnage, but Gaza remains a prominent topic in the wider culture thanks to extraordinary courage of Palestinians and the tireless work of activists across the globe.

At the NBA All-Star Game last weekend, the genocide emerged as a major topic. Sitting courtside on Sunday, director Spike Lee wore a keffiyeh-patterned sweater and bag emblazoned with Palestinian flag pins.

The small gesture generated a wave of hysterical backlash.

” The NBA All-Star Game should unite fans around basketball — not turn into a political billboard,” declared Todd Richman, the co-founder and former co-chair of Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI).

Pro-Trump radio host Sid Rosenberg called Lee “a little bitch” and said he felt compelled to attack the director.

“I do want to point out what a scumbag Spike Lee is,” said Rosenberg. “I would go to a Knick game now and I’m not going to encourage any violence — but somebody would probably have to stop me from running up to Spike Lee and just knocking his ass out. Yeah, I said it.

Pro-Israel activist Lizzy Savetsky delivered an Israeli flag to Lee’s apartment.

Many speculated that Lee had worn the outfit in direct response to Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija, a former IDF member and the first Israeli player to be selected to the all-star team.

Lee denied the accusation in a social media post.

“Much Respect To Deni Avdija, The First Israeli-Born Player In The NBA All-Star Game,” wrote Lee. “Congratulations Also To All The Players And The NBA. There Has Been Some Conjecture About What I Wore To The Games on Saturday and Sunday.”

“The Clothes I Wore are Symbols of My Concern For The Palestinian Children and Civilians, And My Utmost Belief In Human Dignity For All Humankind. What I Wore Was Not Intended As A Gesture Of Hostility To Jewish People Or To Support Violence Against Anyone, Nor Was It Intended As A Comment On The Significance Of Deni Being An All-Star,” he continued.

In contrast to Lee’s stance, NBA superstar Lebron James praised Israel in his press conference.

“If I have fans over there – I’ve never been there – I hope you’ve been following my career,” he told a reporter. “I hope I inspire people over there to not only want to be great at sports but be better in general in life. Hopefully someday I could make it over there. Like I said, I’ve never been over there, but I heard nothing but great things.”

James has really heard nothing but great things about the country for over two years, during a genocide? Can this kind of ignorance simply be chalked up to the detached reality of celebrity?

In The Nation, Dave Zirin argues against such takes.

“James always speaks with great intentionality, and no one should think this was an off-the-cuff comment,” writes Zirin. “It was a statement of support during the second year of a genocide in Gaza alongside the accelerating annexation of the West Bank. Israel has launched a project of ethnic cleansing, and James wanted the world to know that he was unbothered by it. Not only that—he seemed to want to follow in the footsteps of his good friend Draymond Green and take a propaganda trip to do public relations for the Israeli state.”

“James knows what’s going on. Instead of fulfilling his teenage goal of being a hero to the downtrodden, he has chosen to turn his back on war crimes, permitting his fans to do the same,” he continues. “Perhaps he fears what a backlash will do to that other youthful dream of unfathomable wealth. Or maybe he just doesn’t care.”

Gaza was also front and center at Germany’s Berlin International Film Festival this week, where actors and directors have been pressed on the political responsibilities of artists.

More than 80 actors, directors, and writers have signed an open letter condemning the organization’s “institutional silence” over Gaza. Signatories include Tilda Swinton, Javier Bardem, Fernando Meirelles, Mike Leigh, and Adam McKay.

It comes in response to comments made by the head of the festival’s jury, director Wim Wenders, who recently told a reporter that filmmakers should “stay out of politics.”

“The tide is changing across the international film world,” reads the letter. “Many international film festivals have endorsed the cultural boycott of apartheid Israel, including the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam, the world’s biggest, as well as BlackStar Film Festival in the U.S., and Film Fest Gent, Belgium’s largest. More than 5,000 film workers, including leading Hollywood and international figures, have also announced their refusal to work with complicit Israeli film companies and institutions.”

“Yet Berlinale has so far not even met the demands of its community to issue a statement that affirms the Palestinian right to life, dignity, and freedom; condemns the ongoing Israeli genocide of Palestinians; and commits to uphold the right of artists to speak without constraint in support of Palestinian human rights. This is the least it can – and should – do,” it continues.

Randy Fine

Florida Representative, Israel advocate, and infamous bigot Randy Fine is facing a new wave of backlash for his most recent Islamophobic comments.

Last week, Fine tweeted, “If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one.”

He doubled down on the comments later, telling Newsmax, “People should know Democrats like AOC are saying ‘we are going to get rid of your dogs.’ Americans need to keep that in mind when they go and vote in November.”

No lawmaker has actually said they are getting rid of dogs, but many have called for Fine to face consequences over his actions.

“Rep. Fine continues to spew Islamophobia and bigotry from his seat in Congress,” tweeted Congresswoman Delia C. Ramirez (D-IL). “It is unacceptable. His words are despicable, hateful and dangerous. He must take responsibility and resign.”

“We must call this what it is,” wrote Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA). “Disgusting bigotry. Fine must be censured. It’s about morality and decency, not politics.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has also called for Fine to resign, citing his previous anti-Muslim statements.

“Between his call for the destruction of all ‘mainstream Muslims,’ his claim that Palestinian identity itself is evil, and his call for the killing of everyone in Gaza, Randy Fine is a modern Klansman and Nazi all wrapped into one, only his targets are Muslims and Palestinians,” said the group in a statement. “Leaders of Congress across the political spectrum should demand his resignation, which is long overdue.”