Activist and author Mikaela Loach staged a protest walkout at the Edinburgh Book Festival over the event’s sponsor’s link to fossil fuel companies.
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.
France’s César Awards are the countries own version of the Oscars, and are viewed as such by viewers every year. Like the Oscars here in America, the César Awards have been rooted in controversy and political unrest throughout the build up to the ceremony itself. Things reached a boiling point when convicted rapist and disgraced director, Roman Polanski was not only still nominated for a whopping 12 awards at this year’s event, but he ended up winning as well, prompting multiple actors and individuals within the industry to walk out of the arena where the ceremony was held.
Before the award show even aired, the entire board of individuals who oversee the ceremonies inner workings abruptly resigned, in response to the 12 nominations, claiming that his inclusion in the event in 2020 knowing all we do now is an indication of the academy’s “opaque decision-making process.” Polanski’s 12 nominations for his newest film “An Officer and A Spy” made him the most nominated individual at this year’s César Awards as well.
Adèle Haenel
“To honor the men and women who made cinema happen in 2019, to find calm and ensure that the festival of film remains just that, a festival, the board … has decided to resign unanimously. This collective decision will allow complete renewal,” the academy said in a statement.
Polanski himself didn’t attend the ceremony out of “fear of a public lynching.” Protesters began lining up outside of the César Awards early in the morning in order to express their massive anger at a convicted rapist still being acknowledged by a powerful group of individuals who are meant to uphold the sanctity of cinema.
Beyond just civilian protests, when it was announced that Polanski won best director for the film, actors and industry workers alike walked out of the award show in disgust, including actor Adèle Haenel, who was also nominated for her performance in Céline Sciamma’s “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.”
As she and others were exiting it appeared that they were yelling “shame” and pointing at the stage. Footage of Haenel in the lobby of the Salle Pleyel, where the ceremony was held, shows her clapping while yelling “Bravo, pedophilia!” in a now viral clip circulating the internet.
Adèle Haenel and Noémie Merlant
Haenel was joined by her “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” co-star Noémie Merlant and cinematographer Claire Mathon in the walk-out, as well as others. Haenel in general is one of the first major actors in France to speak out about sexual harassment/misconduct in the industry in Europe specifically. She’s been candid with the public in the past about her own unfortunate experience being abused by director Christophe Ruggia when she was just 12-years-old; Ruggia has since been arrested and charged by French authorities for “sexual aggression against a minor by a person of authority and sexual harassment.”
Before the award ceremony Haenel discussed Polanski’s nomination with The New York Times stating: “Distinguishing Polanski is spitting in the face of all victims. It means raping women isn’t that bad. It [France] is one of the countries where the movement [referring to the #MeToo movement in America] was the most closely followed on social media, but from a political perspective and in cultural spheres, France has completely missed the boat.”
Roman Polanski was initially charged with unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor back in 1977 but fled from the United States to France to avoid conviction. Polanski’s been accused multiple times of sexual misconduct and assault, and convicted, so his inclusion and ability to still work within such a powerful and lucrative industry is more than disappointing.
However, the protesters outside the event and Haenel’s walkout were praised by many in Hollywood, including social media responses Rose McGowan, who tweeted, “You have both done it. You are breaking the French system. Keep going.”
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.
Syracuse University is making headlines for all the wrong reasons this week. Four students from the upstate New York University have been suspended for being involved in a racially motivated verbal assault directed towards an African-American student last week, according to Syracuse’s Chancellor Kent Syverud. According to the Chancellor’s statement, a total of fourteen individuals were involved in the incident, however, nine weren’t even Syracuse students, but “appropriate discipline” has been taken on all fourteen students involved from their schools.
“The entire case has also been referred to the Onondaga County District Attorney. The New York State Police’s hate crimes task force has been partnering with us and we’re working with the New York State Division of Human Rights on this matter.” Syverud also addressed another incident in his statement involving white supremacist content being Air Dropped to various students in the school’s Bird Library.”To date, law enforcement has not been able to locate a single individual who directly received an Air Drop. Not one. It was apparent that this rumor was probably a hoax, but that reality was not communicated clearly and rapidly enough to get ahead of escalating anxiety.”
This is not the University’s first instance of offensive and racially charged attacks on minority students. In fact, CNN reports that a total of 12 different incidents of racist and anti-semetic graffiti has been found on Syracuse’s campus within the past few years. In Syverud’s address on this issue, he spoke from personal experience of the racially motivated hate that him and his family endured while living in the South; stating that his kids were threatened, their car tires were slashed on multiple occasions, and it even went as far as some racist individuals shooting their family dog.
“This is Syracuse. This is 2019. I do not accept this hatred here and now, this is not who Syracuse is at its best, and is not who we can let ourselves become. We just cannot let our students of color, our Jewish students, our Asian students, or any of our students, faculty and staff, be afraid on this campus because of who they are,” Syverud added.
The students themselves had seemingly had enough of empty promises and lacking policies that haven’t prevented any of the incidents within the past from occurring. In a community forum regarding this issue this past Wednesday, students performed a group walk out after Syverud said he couldn’t promise that the student’s 18 short-term and long-term demands for change would be met right away. While Syverud did state that the demands would need some time, that wasn’t enough for the students, who after enduring 12 separate incidents, have rightfully had enough.
The demands regarded how the University needs to change in regards to how they handle these racial incidents. CNN reports that the demands included required diversity training for all staff members, a new online housing system in which the students could connect with each other and select their roommates based on mutual interests and racial identities. Additionally, the biggest demand called for the creation of a curriculum that would “educate the entire campus on diversity issues, specifically anti-racism being the focus,” the curriculum would also call for the allocation of $1 million for the creation. Compared to the budget a private university has annually and the high tuition price for Syracuse, $1 million really isn’t as large as it seems.
Syverud’s response to these demands in his speech regarding the incidents stated that he couldn’t fully agree to all the terms until he discussed them with the Board of Trustees and gained clarification on certain items. The students, however, felt they were perfectly clear in what they were asking for, igniting a chant of “Sign or Resign” after Syverud’s response. However, Syverud continued in his speech once the student’s exited the forum to protest, stating that he had agreed to most of the demands already and did sign off. He also presented data and information to the remainder of the forum on how the University plans to respond and incorporate the demands into the future curriculum and policy making for the University.
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.