Posted on 01/25/2014 7:02:57 PM PST by IsraelBeach
Scarlett Johansson Exposes BDS Political Jihad Against Jews, Christians
By Herb Brandon
Israel News Agency
Jerusalem — January 25, 2014 ... American starlet Scarlett Johansson responded to a wave of criticism thrown at her for agreeing to endorse the Israeli company SodaStream, which owns a factory in Israel.
In a statement made to the Huffington Post, Johansson described her role as the first-ever brand ambassador for SodaStream as "building to peace." Johansson also made clear that despite the pressure from the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement (BDS), she would not renege on her commitment to SodaStream, which will include a TV ad to be aired during the Super Bowl.
"While I never intended on being the face of any social or political movement, distinction, separation or stance as a part of my affiliation with SodaStream, given the amount of noise surrounding that decision, I'd like to clear the air," Johansson said in her statement to the Huffington Post.
SodaStream, a company known for making homebound seltzer machines, has its primary factory in the West Bank settlement of Ma'ale Adumim.
The Palestinian BDS movement seized on the move by Johansson, launching a social media campaign on Facebook and Twitter giving the starlet a scarlet "A for Apartheid." The BDS movement lambasted Johansson even further for her role as an Oxfam ambassador, calling the two endorsements incompatible, and coining the phrase "blood bubbles."
The SodaStream factory in Ma'ale Adumim employs 900 Palestinian workers, and reportedly pays them Israeli wages.
Addressing the concerns of her detractors in her statement, Johansson defended her decision and illustrated how the BDS failed to create more suffering among Palestinians by denying them work.
"I remain a supporter of economic cooperation and social interaction between a democratic Israel and Palestine," said Johansson. "Soda Stream is a company that is not only committed to the environment but to building a bridge to peace between Israel and Palestine, supporting neighbors working alongside each other, receiving equal pay, equal benefits and equal rights. That is what is happening in their Ma'ale Adumim factory every working day."
She continued: "I believe in conscious consumerism and transparency and I trust that the consumer will make their own educated choice that is right for them."
In the online bio of Johansson on its Website, Oxfam added a line about the starlet's new endorsement: "Oxfam respects the independence of our ambassadors. However Oxfam believes that businesses that operate in settlements further the ongoing poverty and denial of rights of the Palestinian communities that we work to support. Oxfam is opposed to all trade from Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law. "
One may ask what is Oxfam smoking?
Rather than "furthering poverty" Johansson is endorsing an Israeli company which provides real jobs to Palestinians that pay more than any work offered by Palestinian companies. As for Israeli settlements being "illegal under international law" please show us which law these settlements in Judea and Samaria are breaking?
Johansson addressed Oxfam's remarks in her statement. "As part of my efforts as an Ambassador for Oxfam, I have witnessed first-hand that progress is made when communities join together and work alongside one another and feel proud of the outcome of that work in the quality of their product and work environment, in the pay they bring home to their families and in the benefits they equally receive."
Johansson concluded by saying: "I stand behind the SodaStream product and am proud of the work that I have accomplished at Oxfam."
Oxfam describes Johansson on their Website: "We are proud of our relationship with Scarlett Johansson who has worked with Oxfam since 2005 to support Oxfam’s mission to end poverty and injustice. As an Oxfam Global Ambassador, she has traveled to India, Sri Lanka and Kenya to highlight the impact of traumatic disasters and chronic poverty, and she has helped to raise critical funds for life-saving and poverty-fighting work around the world. We deeply value her support."
An Israeli security analyst noted that part of the funding for the BDS movement comes from both Iran and the EU. He stated that it is three elements that provide motivation to the BDS movement. Anti-Semitism, Islamic Jihad and a clear effort by many Islamic states to divert media attention away from their real domestic issues such as 100,000 civilians murdered in Syria and Christians being murdered in Egypt and Christians under attack in South Sudan.
He said that even with millions of dollars in funding for the BDS bashing Israel PR project, it would be very difficult to convince the world that Israel is evil when in fact it remains one of the leading contributors to high tech development, medical research and global humanitarian aid.
"Where are the Arab states as children are gassed to death in Syria," he said.
"Where are the boycotts against the Syria government, against Bashar al-Assad? These Islamic states are hiding under something called the BDS and the United Nations. But they are not succeeding. The BDS movement against Israeli universities failed with over 220 US universities rejecting any sort of boycott. People may be busy with their every day chores but they are not stupid. They know that the only democracy in the Middle East - Israel - has been used as a false media diversion for war crimes taking place in the Arab world and Africa and they will no longer accept these Disneyland libels targeting Israel. If one cares to see the total and complete failure of the BDS movement against Israel, just go on Twitter and type in #BDSFail."
She’s talented! I’d swear she’s smiling at me.
She has a couple of good points!!
You all realize she’ll soon have to utter something completely anti-conservative to “set things right” with her Hollywood contemporaries.
Bow Chicka bow wow
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
..................
Not as long as you’ve been not making sense.
Looks like she’s in big trouble then. :’)
Gee, what a surprise. A great big s*** sandwich, and Oxfam is sitting in the middle of it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.