American Radical at Henley International Film Festival

May 13th, 2010 • Events, Film & Documentary, News
Tags: American Radical, film, Henley International Film Festival, HIFF, Jeremy Hardy, Katie Barlow, Norman Finkelstein, oxford, Professor Avi Shlaim

On Tuesday May 25th 2010, the HIFF will be screening the documentary ‘American Radical. The trials of Norman Finkelstein‘ which will be followed by a Q&A forum with Professor Avi Shlaim.

Reading PSC has been invited to attend the event by Katie Barlow and Jeremy Hardy. Members of Reading PSC will be there with our information stall – we look forward to seeing you!

Book your tickets here…

Norman Finkelstein has a mission – to speak the truth. And the truth, as he sees it, is inflammatory to his fellow Jews, including arch enemy and distinguished Harvard scholar Alan Dershowitz.

The son of concentration camp survivors, Finkelstein was heavily influenced by his mother, who became an impassioned pacifist. Finkelstein has devoted his energetic academic career to publishing and speaking out against Israel, and denouncing the invocation of the Holocaust to justify displacement and oppression of Palestinians.

– USA, 84min. Director Nicolas Rossier.

HIFF FORUM & Q&A

Following the screening, there will be a discussion and Q&A session with Professor Avi Shlaim, who features in the film. Professor Shlaim is a Fellow of St Antony’s College and a Professor of International Relations at the University of Oxford. He is a frequent contributor to the newspapers and commentator on radio and television on Middle Eastern affairs, and has authored many books including The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World.

The evening will be hosted by broadcaster and comedian, Jeremy Hardy, who featured in the critically-acclaimed documentary Jeremy Hardy v The Israeli Army and is a regular panelist on Radio 4′s News Quiz.

This Time We Went Too Far: Truth and Consequences of the Gaza Invasion

March 25th, 2010 • Film & Documentary, News
Tags: book, gaza, Norman Finkelstein, This Time We Went Too Far

Foreword from Norman Finkelstein’s new book:

Alongside many others I have devoted much of my adult life to the achievement of a just peace between Israel and Palestine. It cannot be said that Palestinians living under occupation have derived much benefit from these efforts. The changes that have occurred have only been for the worse. Under the guise of what is called the “peace process” Israel has effectively annexed wide swaths of the West Bank and shredded the social fabric of Palestinian life there and in the Gaza Strip.

It would nonetheless be unduly pessimistic to say that no progress has been made. Israel can no longer count on reflexive support for its policies. Public opinion polls over the past decade reveal a growing unease with Israeli conduct not only outside but also inside Jewish communities around the world. This shift largely stems from the fact that the public is now much better informed. Historians have dispelled many of the myths Israel propagated to justify its dispossession and displacement of Palestine’s indigenous population; human rights organizations have exposed Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinians living under occupation; and a consensus has crystallized in the legal-diplomatic arena around a settlement of the conflict that upholds the basic rights of Palestinians.

The simmering discontent with Israeli conduct reached a boiling point in December 2008 when Israel invaded Gaza. The merciless Israeli assault on a defenseless civilian population evoked widespread shock and disgust. Deep fissures opened up in the Jewish communities, especially among the younger generations. Many of Israel’s erstwhile supporters who did not vocally dissent chose to remain silent rather than defend the indefensible.

The first part of this book analyzes the motives behind Israel’s assault on Gaza and chronicles what Amnesty International called “22 days of death and destruction.” The least that we owe the people of Gaza is an accurate record of the suffering they endured. No one can bring back the dead or restore the shattered lives of those who survived but we can still respect the memory of their sacrifice by preserving it intact.

But this book is not just a lament; it also sets forth grounds for hope. The bloodletting in Gaza has roused the world’s conscience. The prospects have never been more propitious for galvanizing the public not just to mourn but to act. We have truth on our side, and we have justice on our side. These become mighty weapons once we have learned how to wield them effectively. The challenge now is two-fold: to master, and inform the public of, the unvarnished record of what happened in Gaza; and then to mobilize the public around a settlement of the conflict that all of enlightened opinion has embraced—but that Israel and the United States, standing in virtual isolation, have rejected. It is my hope that this book will help meet this challenge and, ultimately, enable everyone, Palestinian and Israeli, to live a dignified life.

Interview on Democracy NOW! discussing his new book and Netanyahu’s AIPAC comments. Includes a clip from a new documentary about Finkelstein, American Radical: The Trials of Norman Finkelstein:

Part 1:
Part 2:

Read an excerpt from the book at Counter Punch…

Trailer for American Radical: The Trials of Norman Finkelstein