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Folklorama: Israeli pavilion

 A letter to the organizers:


While Russia is carrying out unprovoked war against Ukraine, Folklorama is eschewing holding a Russian pavilion, even though such a display is about 100s of years old Russian culture, not today’s regime led by Putin. That’s a fair and compassionate decision. 

So why is the Israeli pavilion allowed to continue without any censure while Israel commits war crimes condemned by the International Court of Justice? *Jewish* culture is thousands of years old but it’s not a Jewish pavilion, it's an explicitly *Israeli* pavilion.

It’s celebrating the state that is committing genocide.

It’s celebrating settler colonialism that is going on to this very day.

Why are you allowing the Israeli pavilion to continue?

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Comments

kar0ling said…
Impressive. I do not have to boycott Folklorama this year. I received a quick email acknowledging my message. After a few days, the Marketing Director followed up with an explanation that the analogy to Russia doesn't entirely work since the Russian pavilion voluntarily pulled out. I replied to acknowledge it's easily to hide under the "we're just celebrating culture" excuse but the name of the state *is* invoked by the pavilion and the state *is* committing genocide which is pretty much exactly opposite of the goals of the festival. Then a higher executive replied very generously, saying that I had been heard and important discussions will be had by the decision making parties.
July 28, 2025 at 2:59 PM
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