Things that are good: Real Art Ways

On Saturday I walked the half dozen blocks or so to Real Art Ways. This is a facility in the West End of Hartford that has art installations, cocktail hours, interesting movies, and other stuff. Membership is $50 a year and is well worth it as you get to see top-notch movies for $5.

The night that I went, and decided to join, Budrus was playing. This is a film that you simply must see. It is a documentary about a village in Palestine. The Israelis intend to construct a wall through the olive orchards that have been farmed by villagers for generations. Understandably, the villagers are upset. Instead of being your standard film about the violence that infects this region, this is a film about the struggle, not for freedom or security, but for peace. Eschewing the violence that has characterized this conflict, the villagers endeavor to forge a nonviolent path. It isn't always easy, but people on all sides of the conflict learn a lot in this film. So will you.

The film was followed by a discussion lead by a local rabbi. The audience was invited to share their reactions to the film. The moment that stood out for most was when a group of Israeli protesters came to help the villagers. A village girl remarked that she never thought that she would have an Israeli friend and that the only Israelis, the only Jews, that she had ever met were soldiers, and mean.

While this moment of humanizing the opposition was indeed powerful, what stood out the most for me was that it is very difficult to be peaceful. Here you have a group of people who have farmed their land for generations, and now an occupying force has invaded their village. Voices call for non-violence, but when a military force is occupying your street, and shoving people around, it is understandable that you would want to throw stones. On the other hand, you have a group of people, representing a state that was forged in the aftermath of the most horrendous crime ever committed. A state that represents people who are terrorized on a daily basis by threats and acts of extreme violence. It is understandable that you place safety above farming traditions.

In this atmosphere, things can easily degenerate into violence, as indeed, in the film, they occasionally do. What is remarkable is that people persevere along the path of nonviolence. On some level I'm sure I was aware that nonviolence is not easy, but this film really drove that point home for me.

Anyway, the film is good, but it has flaws. It would've be nice, for example, if the filmmakers had included more context. For instance, we never learn the Israeli reasoning for choosing the path that they chose for their wall. Instead, we are just given the circuitous route without explanation. As a member of the discussion pointed out, a likely reason is that the route was chosen to protect the Israeli settlements that exist in Palestinian territory. While this omission makes the film seem more biased than it needs to be (the story is powerful on its own), it does not ruin it.

So, thank you Real Art Ways for bringing this film to Hartford. It is currently the only venue in which you can see it, so I urge you to take this opportunity.

On a side note, if you ever want to start an argument with a group of Jewish people, apparently all you need to do is start dropping U.N. resolution numbers.