Tilda Swinton, Mark Ruffalo, Roger Waters, Peter Gabriel and Brian EnoĀ are among dozens of writers, musicians and actors who have condemned Donald Trumpās move to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
āIn recognising Jerusalem as Israelās capital,ā the letter states, āDonald Trump seeks to achieve through a declaration what Israel has been trying to do for 50 years through force of arms: to erase Palestinians, as a political and cultural presence, from the life of their own city.ā
āThe Palestinian people of Jerusalem are already subject to municipal discrimination at every level, and a creeping process of ethnic cleansing.ā
The letter, whose signatories also include playwright Caryl Churchill, director Mike Leigh and the actors Maxine Peake, Julie Christie and Juliette Stephenson, highlights Israelās ācontinuing policy of house demolitionsā, as well as the occupation authoritiesā closure of āat least 35 Palestinian public institutions and NGOs in occupied East Jerusalemā over the last 15 years.
The letter, according to Days of Palestine, notes that ācultural institutions have been a particular targetā, adding that āat the same time, Israeli authorities and entrepreneurs have spent millions in clearing Palestinian neighbourhoods to create āheritageā projects that promote a myth of mono-ethnic urban identity, said to stretch back 3,000 years.ā
āWe reject Trumpās collusion with such racist manipulation and his disregard for international law,ā the letter concludes.
āWe deplore his readiness to crown the Israeli military conquest of East Jerusalem and his indifference to Palestinian rights. As artists and as citizens, we challenge the ignorance and inhumanity of these policies, and celebrate the resilience of Palestinians living under occupation.ā
Interview: Roger Waters Confronts the Occupation of the Canadian Mind (VIDEO)
