New Documentary Shares Hope in Midst of Violence

OKLAHOMA CITY, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Preparations are underway for peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders at the White House. Netanyahu and Abbas have agreed to initiate negotiations, hoping to reach a peaceful settlement within one year that will result in the emergence of an independent, democratic, and viable Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel and its other neighbors.

As hope for negotiated peace once again begins to gain momentum; a very timely and highly compelling documentary about the conflict releases in October. Little Town of Bethlehem from EthnoGraphic Media (EGM) addresses the growing nonviolence movement in Palestine and Israel. The film tells the story of three courageous men from opposite sides of the conflict who, at great personal cost, have already discovered the key to a nonviolent resolution to this seemingly intractable conflict. Produced by Mart Green, directed by Jim Hanon, and filmed on location in the West Bank, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem, Little Town of Bethlehem brings awareness to a growing nonviolent movement in the Middle East that rarely, if ever, makes international headlines.

EGM will launch its national grassroots campaign on September 21st.  Nine select campuses (from Boston to Berkeley) will be hosting launch screenings of Little Town of Bethlehem. Faculty experts will join the film's three protagonists, director, and producer in discussions around nonviolent solutions to the ongoing conflict. Beyond that, more than 150 colleges and universities in the US as well as the EU have committed to campus screenings beginning in late September.

The protagonists are Sami Awad, a Palestinian Christian whose grandfather was killed in Jerusalem in 1948. Today he is the executive director of Holy Land Trust, a non-profit organization that promotes Palestinian independence through peaceful means. Yonatan Shapira is an Israeli Jew whose grandparents were Zionist settlers who witnessed the birth of the Israeli nation. Today he is an outspoken advocate for the nonviolent peace movement, both in his homeland and abroad. Ahmad Al' Azzah is a Palestinian Muslim who has lived his entire life in the Azzah refugee camp in Bethlehem. Today, Ahmad heads the nonviolence program at Holy Land Trust, where he trains others in the methods of peaceful activism.

Little Town of Bethlehem honestly and respectfully shares Sami's, Yonatan's, and Ahmad's stories. With all three men referencing both Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi during individual interviews, it is clear that their words, thoughts, and actions on nonviolence still profoundly impact today's nonviolent movement. Little Town of Bethlehem is not just about educating and inspiring viewers, this film raises the question, "can the cycle of violence be broken?"

View the trailer at  http://littletownofbethlehem.org

SOURCE EthnoGraphic Media