USPCN, NAARPR, & others disrupt Independent Spirit Awards to stop #GazaGenocide

For Immediate Release: Monday, February 26th.

On Sunday, February 25th, members of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), the National
Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR), along with autonomous organizers and
film workers disrupted the Film Independent Spirit Awards, on the second biggest weekend of
Hollywood’s award season. This joint action by autonomous organizers, film workers and members of
the Palestinian and Black liberation movements was organized to expose Hollywood’s support for the
U.S.-funded Israeli genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, and its retaliation against anyone in
the film industry who speaks out against Israel’s atrocities and war crimes.

The autonomous LA-based group of film workers researched & planned the action out of the urgent
need to bring the demand for ceasefire and Palestinian liberation into the much-publicized film &
TV awards season. The protest, conducted by USPCN and NAARPR, began first among the crowd in the
“fan pit.” At about 12 Noon, protesters began chanting with a megaphone, calling for Israel to stop
the genocide, and for the U.S. to end all aid to Israel. They also took special care to point out
that if the U.S. were not sending billions of dollars of aid to Israel every year, we could invest
that money into our own communities so that people wouldn’t be forced to beg for autographs to
later be sold on eBay.

Once the ceremony began, loud chants were played on loop from the megaphone on full blast. The
chants of “Ceasefire Now” and “Free Free Palestine” were clearly heard in the tent, where the
awards ceremony was being held. Presenters, performers, and awardees alike all had to speak over
the chanting, and the producers took great pains to try to stop the noise. Protesters informed them
that they would stop immediately if participants called for a ceasefire during the program, but
they refused. The disruption continued until the end of the event, and garnered plenty of support
from the public as well as from attendees.

The disruption was covered in the mainstream entertainment press, as Rolling Stone, Hollywood
Reporter, Los Angeles Times, Variety, Entertainment Weekly, and IndieWire all posted articles.

It is clear that many people in Hollywood want to speak out in condemnation of the genocide in
Palestine, but are afraid because others who have already spoken out have been viciously retaliated
against and repressed. We reminded them that the urgency of the moment requires courage, and that
the 30,000 Palestinians who have already been killed and the almost 2 million others who have been displaced from their homes in Gaza need Hollywood artists to shout down U.S. and Israeli barbarism, regardless of the consequences.

“I won the John Cassavetes Spirit Award in 2021,” said Merawi Gerima, NAARPR member and one of the
Sunday protesters. “So I am also of this community, and I call on my fellow filmmakers and artists
to take a stand. What good are these awards if we had to be silent in the face of genocide in order
to receive them?” S K of the unaffiliated LA group encouraged all to participate where and when
they can, “We as autonomous organizers and film workers want to remind people that everyone has
agency to speak up and take action, even if you don’t work with an organization.”

And as two national organizations that help lead the Coalition to March on the DNC, USPCN and
NAARPR call on everyone, including Hollywood artists, to join us in Chicago this August to protest
#GenocideJoe Biden and the other Democrats who are allowing Israel to commit genocide with
impunity.

#HollywoodTakeAStand #CeasefireNOW #FreePalestine #GazaGenocide #RafahUnderAttack #StopArmingIsrael #EndUSAidToIsrael

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