A conversation about the documentary Boycott
For the 15th anniversary of the Toronto Palestine Film Festival (TPFF), my friend Isobel Bird and I went to see Boycott, a documentary directed by Julia Bacha and released in November of 2021.
The film exposes a shocking piece of current legislation silently passed in 33 states across the United States, that prevents citizens from boycotting Israel. The anti-boycott clause is found at the bottom of every governmental business contract in the state; workers must pledge not to withhold their income from Israeli goods or services if they wish to keep their jobs. Remaining neutral, Bacha shadowed three Americans who refused to sign their contracts and filed a lawsuit against their respective state governments for breaching the 1st Amendment, the right to free speech. On our way home, we chatted about the film. Here’s what we had to say.
Isobel Bird: I believe [the film’s neutrality] is a good thing.
Kalliopé Anvar McCall: Why?
IB: [In a documentary,] you are trying to [record] reality to bring awareness to [the issue]. The only way to do that is to remain neutral, to maintain credibility. You [can’t be] pushing an agenda. Once you start pushing an agenda, people start resisting.
KAM: Hmm, the neutrality kind of bothered me. The film is definitely anti-Israeli, but it’s not necessarily pro-Palestinian. And that’s an interesting choice for the TPFF which is pro-Palestinian. In the interview with Bacha at the end, someone asked, “Why didn’t you take a more pro-Palestine stance?” And…
IB: It’s true, she completely evaded that question.
KAM: Although, maybe it’s because she’s using the documentary as a political tool.
IB: Yeah, that’s what I think. And I think the reality speaks for itself. The reality and the facts are themselves pro-Palestinian. You shouldn’t need to take a stance.
KAM: Yeah, I just feel that taking a strong stance is a necessary tool for making change.
IB: I do see that. It was a choice Bacha made as a Brazilian [film]maker.
—
Of the three Americans Bacha shadowed, Bahia Amawi had the most interesting story. Amawi is a Palestinian-American pediatric speech pathologist who filed a suit against the state of Texas. Amawi is doubly affected by the anti-boycott law: as an American, it infringes on her right to consume freely, and as a Palestinian, it prevents her from fighting against the apartheid that oppresses her family. In court, however, Amawi chose to defend her rights as an American only, not as a Palestinian.
IB: [Just like] Bacha was neutral, Amawi herself was neutral. She was [just] trying to [make sure her constitutional rights] were being respected. [It was] not about moral judgments, just the law. This entire thing is not about Israel or Palestine for Amawi. It’s about American rights and values.
KAM: She had to pick her battles, as a Muslim Palestinian-American woman in America.
—
Horrifyingly, Boycott reveals that the anti-boycott law is not an isolated piece of legislation. It is a template, and it’s currently being used to prevent other groups, like climate action movements and gun control organizations, from boycotting industries such as fossil fuel producers and the National Rifle Association (NRA).
Behind this model of duplicable, right-wing legislature is the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a yearly convention for Republican politicians, Christian evangelists, and other like-minded fellows. Anti-free speech legislation that gets developed at the conference is often implemented in state houses across the country.
IB: ALEC is very scary. It’s a machine designed to make it easy to turn malicious, stupid ideas into laws. And one [politician] didn’t even bother to read about the law before voting on it! That Democratic State Senator, [Greg Leding].
KAM: Oh yeah! He was like, yeah, in hindsight, I should have done more research on Israel and Palestine because I would have probably voted differently. That was crazy.
—
The film, however, did end on a relatively good note. Spoiler alert: Amawi won her lawsuit in Texas and was able to go back to work. So did Jordahl, in Arizona. Unfortunately, Leveritt lost his case in Arkansas, but he remains confident as it is now being brought to the Supreme Court for reconsideration. However, a federal anti-boycott law has also been proposed and will be voted on in January of 2023.
KAM: That was the most heartbreaking part about the film. Amawi, Jordahl, and Leveritt fought so hard for such a tiny win.
IB: Miniscule.
KAM: Although they did something quite valuable. They made this anti-boycott law a national issue. It’s now in the news. And seeing as it is a template and there are plans to reproduce it, it’s good that it’s being brought to light.
—
Find Boycott screenings online at: https://justvision.org/boycott
