The mayor of Miami Beach is proposing to terminate a lease agreement and discontinue thousands of dollars in financial support for an independent film theater after it screened an Oscar-winning documentary about the ongoing conflict between Palestinians and Israelis in the West Bank.
In a newsletter sent to residents Tuesday night, Mayor Steven Meiner explained his objections over the documentary “No Other Land,” which has had several showings at O Cinema, an art house film cinema in South Beach, despite pressure from Meiner to cancel the screenings. He called the film, which won an Academy Award last week but has faced criticism from supporters of Israel, “a false one-sided propaganda attack on the Jewish people that is not consistent with the values of our City and residents.”
Meiner is now introducing city legislation that seeks to terminate the lease agreement with the cinema, which rents space from the city at the old City Hall on Washington Avenue, and to immediately cut all city funding.
Marthell confirmed to the Miami Herald on Friday that the film would continue with its scheduled screenings. After receiving media attention for the film controversy, the theater sold out screenings and added two more dates later in March. “But let me be clear: our decision to screen NO OTHER LAND is not a declaration of political alignment. It is, however, a bold reaffirmation of our fundamental belief that every voice deserves to be heard, even, and perhaps especially, when it challenges us,” Marthell said in an email to the Herald late last week.
“A religious Jew was voted as Mayor, along with a Zionist city council. Unlike other cities, we have zero tolerance for pro Hamas/ terrorist propaganda,” Suarez wrote in a text message to the Herald. “The City of Miami Beach will continue to stand up for our Jewish population, home to holocaust survivors, and while most people use ‘Never Again’ as a platitude, we mean it.”
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