MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner has withdrawn his resolution to terminate O Cinema’s lease following controversy over an Oscar-winning film.
The dispute stemmed from O Cinema’s screening of the Academy Award-winning documentary No Other Land, created by a Palestinian-Israeli collective. The film focuses on occupation and Palestinian displacement in the West Bank.
A large crowd attended Wednesday’s City Hall meeting, with most speaking out against the resolution.
A handful of supporters backed the mayor’s stance, including Miami and Hialeah’s mayors and the consul general of Israel in Miami.
However, the majority of commissioners opposed the resolution, saying the issue was not about siding with Israel or Palestine but about First Amendment rights, freedom of speech, and artistic expression.
What sparked the controversy?
Meiner said he watched the film and considered it “one-sided propaganda” that he felt could spread antisemitism.
“We’re in the heart of Miami Beach, a very highly populated Jewish area. If you went into the heart of a Black neighborhood and showed a racist film, or went into the heart of a Cuban neighborhood and showed a film that glorified (Fidel) Castro and the revolution, or the heart of a gay community and showed an attack on the LGBT community, I think someone would expect a response,” he added.
“The destruction of a school, the shooting of civilians, the pouring of concrete into a water well… these are not hateful inaccuracies. It’s certainly not antisemitic to portray it,” said an O Cinema employee.
“We should learn from history and not allow racist propaganda footage to be shown against any minority community,” another attendee stated.
After extensive public and commissioner comments, the resolution was withdrawn, meaning O Cinema is no longer at risk of losing its lease over the film screening.
