In his first public remarks about the Oct. 7th terror attack on Israel, legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg expressed shock over the “unspeakable barbarity” that occurred.
“I never imagined I would see such unspeakable barbarity against Jews in my lifetime,” he said in an interview with the USC Shoah Foundation, an organization he reportedly founded in 1994.
According to The Jerusalem Post, the foundation “has begun collecting testimonies and accounts from survivors of the October 7 attacks as part of their Countering Antisemitism Through Testimony Collection initiative, a project that documents post-Holocaust antisemitism.”
“Rob Williams and the team at the USC Shoah Foundation are leading an effort that will ensure that the voices of survivors will act as a powerful tool to counter the dangerous rise of antisemitism and hate,” Spielberg said in his interview.
“Both initiatives – recording interviews with survivors of the October 7 attacks and the ongoing collection of Holocaust testimony – seek to fulfill our promise to survivors: that their stories would be recorded and shared in the effort to preserve history and to work toward a world without antisemitism or hate of any kind. We must remain united and steadfast in these efforts,” he added.
Spielberg’s remarks come three weeks after the Holocaust Survivors’ Foundation-USA published a letter by its present, David Schaecter, calling on him to say something:
“I have admired your career and especially your work to tell the world about the horrors of the Holocaust, in film, and in helping to document the experiences of tens of thousands of Survivors,” the letter reads.
“That is why I, along with countless other Survivors, are so heartbroken that, since October 7, 2023, you have not spoken out and publicly taken a stand against terrorism, against Hamas and the millions who celebrate the shedding of Jewish blood — and want more. Why all my heart, I encourage you to speak out for the children, women and men kidnapped and held hostage, and in support of Israel and Israel’s right to defend itself,” it continues.
Schaecter goes on to question the legitimacy of the USC Shoah Foundation’s mission statement.
“Wasn’t the entire purpose of recording fifty thousand testimonies of our fellow Survivors to make sure the world would never be able to deny, and must never forget, the Nazis’ systematic murder of six million Jews, including one and a half million children? On October 7, Hamas committed the worst atrocities against the Jewish people since the Holocaust,” he writes.
He eventually concludes the letter with a timely lecture.
“Mr. Spielberg, Schindler’s List was about one man having the moral courage to risk his life to save others. We are not asking you to risk your life. We are asking you to use your voice. Take it from those of us who were subjected to the most brutal and deadly anti-Semitism of all time: It will never go away, and Jews will never be safe until Israel is safe and secure,” he writes.
“As the premier Jewish filmmaker in the world, your silence now is a comfort for our enemies. Your full-throated support for Israel and the Jewish people at the moment would make a real difference, not only for our people, but for the world. We do not need another film in 3 years about the horrors of October 7th. Instead, we need you and others to speak out NOW, when it truly matters,” he adds.
Responding to Spielberg’s later-than-ever statement, critics were pretty tough on him for waiting so long to finally open his mouth:
Take a little long, eh?
— The Kosher Red Pill (@KosherRedPill) December 9, 2023
Sorry, but that is too late.
— buchpira (@karin_auer) December 6, 2023
2 months. Shameful #StevenSpielberg.
— America First (@HKirsh1) December 6, 2023
What took him so long ? Did his statement get held up in editing
— Paula Krauss (@ptkrauss) December 6, 2023
He certainly took his time speaking out against Oct 7. I hate to think he plans on making a film exploiting this but since he’s a dyed-in-the-wool leftist, nothing would surprise me, mea culpa.
— TwittaChicca (@TwittaChicca) December 6, 2023
Critics were also tough on him for being a left-winger given that the vast majority of the current antisemitism has been stemming from the left, not the right.
“He shouldn’t be surprised, it’s all coming from his left wing friends,” one critic wrote.
See more responses below:
Maybe he shouldn’t have bent to the woke, which are the main horrible humans doing what they do, being the actual racists and fascists
— TheOther Guy (@flea102971) December 9, 2023
And funniest part is, he doesn’t even realize it is the people HE bends over too that do it.
— Mulan – 寻访者 ♀ (@TheRealTon168) December 9, 2023
All his friends are maybe are not who he thought they were? The mind virus is real. The left is not the party they were when I was a young in the 70’s. Socialism and segregation is their new norm. Keeping us fighting each other gives them more power over us. #AlexJonesWasRight
— (@dnmarlin) December 9, 2023
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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