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A movie theater in Miami Beach is facing eviction from a city-owned building after it showed the documentary that won this year's Academy Award. "No Other Land" follows the displacement of a Palestinian community in the West Bank. But Miami Beach's mayor said the screenings have to stop. Here's NPR's Greg Allen.
GREG ALLEN, BYLINE: "No Other Land" stirred controversy even before it took home the Oscar for best documentary. Israel's minister of culture and sports called it a carefully crafted piece of demagoguery. A collaboration between Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers, it follows events in a Palestinian town in the West Bank as soldiers and bulldozers tear homes down so it can be used as a military training zone.
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BASEL ADRA: This is what's happening in my village now. Soldiers are everywhere.
UNIDENTIFIED SOLDIER: (Speaking Arabic).
ALLEN: That's from the trailer. The film has struggled to find a distributor in the U.S. but is being screened at a handful of independent theaters around the country, including O Cinema in Miami Beach. That news surprised Miami Beach's mayor, Steven Meiner. In a letter to the theater's CEO earlier this month, he cited some of the criticism leveled at the film and asked her to, quote, "not air this hateful propaganda film." In a video address to constituents yesterday, Meiner said he watched the documentary before sending the letter.
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STEVEN MEINER: It definitely triggers emotions - the movie. It's certainly painting the Israeli army, and the Jewish people in general, in a very negative light - definitely a one-sided propaganda.
ALLEN: Meiner says many important facts about the history and ownership of the land in the town was left out of the film, and that it shouldn't be shown in a city-owned building. After receiving his letter, O Cinema's CEO, Vivian Marthell, at first told the mayor she would pull the film because of concerns it might be viewed as antisemitic. But by the next day, she saw what she calls the broader perspective.
VIVIAN MARTHELL: That it wasn't about the film - it was about our First Amendment right. I had a conversation with my staff, with my board, and we all agreed that it was really important to show this critical film. It's an award-winning film. It's on mission.
ALLEN: "No Other Land" has been sold out at screenings, and O Cinema has added additional dates. But in the meantime, Mayor Meiner drew up a proposal to cancel the theater's lease at a city-owned building. He would also withdraw some $40,000 in city funding. Miami bookstore owner and film producer Mitch Kaplan says Meiner's proposal violates principles of free speech and artistic expression that are an important part of American democracy.
MITCH KAPLAN: Threatening to evict a theater for showing a film is clearly an act of censorship, plain and simple.
ALLEN: In his video address yesterday, Meiner, who's Jewish, noted that Miami Beach has a large number of Jewish residents. The documentary, he says, is antisemitic.
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MEINER: Free speech is sacrosanct, but hate speech, not so much - especially when it has the ability to cause significant damage.
ALLEN: Daniel Tilley, an attorney with ACLU Florida, says under the Constitution, all speech is protected, even if an official disagrees with it. He says the law is clear.
DANIEL TILLEY: The First Amendment does not allow the government to discriminate based on viewpoint or to retaliate against anyone for their speech. This is not a gray area. Simply put, if the City of Miami Beach adopts this resolution, they will be breaking the law.
ALLEN: The dispute surrounding the showing of "No Other Land" in Miami Beach has galvanized support for O Cinema from around the country. More than 600 filmmakers have signed a letter urging Miami Beach city commissioners to reject the proposal to evict and defund the theater. The commission is scheduled to vote on the mayor's proposal at a meeting later today.
Greg Allen, NPR News, Miami Beach. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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