On Friday 25 August 2023, Samidoun NY/NJ held a screening and discussion of the documentary film “Jenin, Jenin” directed by Mohammed Bakri at Mayday Space in NYC. The film, by Palestinian director Mohammed Bakri, covers the battle of Jenin refugee camp in 2002, including the massacre of Palestinians and the destruction of portions of the camp, and the resistance of the people. The film highlights the voices of Palestinians in Jenin, from elders to youth, and their unquenched spirit of resistance and commitment to liberation despite the devastation and trauma to which they have been subjected.
The film has faced attacks and repression inside occupied Palestine; Bakri, the director, is a Palestinian from occupied Palestine ’48, who holds Israeli citizenship. The film is banned from screening by occupation authorities and all copies of the film were directed to be seized, after it was subjected to a lawfare campaign by occupation soldiers. The ban on the film was upheld by occupation courts as late as 2022.
In light of the ongoing resistance in Jenin refugee camp and the resistance’s thwarting of the invasion of Jenin in July 2023, the film’s resonance has only increased in the 20 years since its release. Dozens of attendees enjoyed the film and participated in a lively discussion afterward.
Within Our Lifetime – United for Palestine members also attended the event, speaking about their campaign to condemn New Yor City Mayor Eric Adams for his recent normalization trip to “israel” and uplift the message #EricAdamsHasBloodOnHisHands. Adams is well-known for his boosting of additional policing and repression in Black and Brown communities in New York, as well as for his condemnation of Fatima, the Yemeni graduation speaker at CUNY School of Law who was attacked by a massive Zionist smear campaign for speaking out about injustice and oppression from New York City to Palestine.
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As WOL noted, “On Tuesday August 22, Adams’ first full day in Palestine, Othman Abu Kharj, a 17 year old Palestinian teenager, was murdered by IOF when he was shot in the head during a raid by zionist forces south of Jenin. That day, Adams met with israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, cozying up to the war criminal and pledging to deepen the ‘unbreakable bond’ between NYC and the zionist entity. This past week alone four Palestinians have been killed by IOF, with the number of martyrs so far this year surpassing two hundred. Their blood is on the mayor’s hands.
Adams also met on Tuesday with Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and Israel Gantz, one of the leaders of the illegal settler movement in the West Bank, and head of the ‘Binyamin Regional Council.’ During the meeting they discussed ‘cooperation in the fields of tourism and education,” and Adams ‘agreed to tour the settlements’ during his next visit…On Wednesday, Adams toured the occupation’s National Police Academy, just one month after hosting israeli President Isaac Herzog at NYPD headquarters.”
Samidoun NY/NJ is organizing in the New York/New Jersey area to free Palestinian prisoners and in support of Palestinian liberation. To learn more or get involved, visit Samidoun NY/NJ on Instagram or Twitter.
