Images of Israeli Hostages Displayed Across from Oscars Afterparty Venue
The Beverly Hills city council also voted to reinstate a display of Israeli flags, each one symbolizing an Israeli who was killed on October 7th.
By Shula Rosen
Attendees of the star-studded Vanity Fair after-party following the Oscars were shown images of the 134 hostages still held in Israel projected onto a building opposite the venue of the party.
The projection of hostage images followed similar displays after the Golden Globes and Grammys.
The project was arranged by Matti Leshem and Lynn Harris, a married film-making couple who live in Los Angeles and have advocated for the release of hostages since October 7th.
In a statement, Leshem said, “On the evening of the Academy Awards, as the entire world turns its eyes to Hollywood, the entertainment industry has a responsibility to speak out on behalf of the 134 people – men, women, and children – who are being held captive in horrific conditions by Hamas.”
“This display will remind our colleagues in the entertainment industry about this tragedy, and encourage them to demand that Hamas release the hostages now,” it concluded.
The display almost didn’t go up because it was initially turned down by Beverly Hills city officials who stated that the application wasn’t received far enough in advance.
However, the Hostage and Missing Families Forum persuaded Beverly Hills city officials to grant permission, saying that they didn’t apply for the display earlier because they a 6-week ceasefire and hostage release deal seemed imminent until it was blocked by Hamas a week ago.
Beverly Hills city officials decided to go ahead and grant permission for the display which is called “The Wall of Awareness.”
“I don’t think you can find a single one of us sitting up here who is not in strong support of Israel and supporting the release of the hostages,” councilwoman Sharona Nazarian, who is Jewish, said at the meeting.
The city council also voted to reinstate a display of Israeli flags, each one symbolizing an Israeli who was killed on October 7th.
This was over the objection of a few local police officials who said a display of Israeli flags could become a “potential target” for Pro-Palestinian protestors.
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