Scarlett Johansson
In 2014, Scarlett Johansson became the global ambassador for the Israeli company SodaStream. She then faced scrutiny as the company's main factory is located in the illegal settlement of Ma'ale Adumim. Its Palestinian workers allegedly work in slave-like conditions.
Who is Scarlett Johansson?
Scarlett Johansson is an American actress and was a global ambassador for SodaStram.
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In January 2014, Scarlett Johansson became the global brand ambassador for the Israeli company SodaStream. The company's main factory is located in Ma'ale Adumim.
She was also an ambassador for Oxfam, which opposes all trade from israeli settlements that are illegal under international law. Ma'ale Adumim is an illegal Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Oxfam has criticized SodaStream for this. Rather than dissolving her partnership with SodaStream, Johansson chose to step down as ambassador of Oxfam in January 2014 citing "a fundamental difference of opinion of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement" and continued representing SodaStream, appearing in a Super Bowl commercial for the company in 2015.
Oxfam accepted Johansson's resignation and released this statement:
"While Oxfam respects the independence of our ambassadors, Ms. Johansson’s role promoting the company SodaStream is incompatible with her role as an Oxfam Global Ambassador.
"Oxfam believes that businesses, such as SodaStream, that operate in settlements further the ongoing poverty and denial of rights of the Palestinian communities that we work to support.
"Oxfam is opposed to all trade from Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law. Ms. Johansson has worked with Oxfam since 2005 and in 2007 became a Global Ambassador, helping to highlight the impact of natural disasters and raise funds to save lives and fight poverty."
She doubled down on her support for SodaStream, claiming that it fosters peace between Israel and Palestine.
Publications have published accounts of SodaStream's Palestinian factory workers who allege that they work under slave-like conditions. They also spoke about not being allowed to pray, negating the company's claims that it respects its workers right to freedom of religion.
After the fallout from her unwavering support for SodaStream, Johansson was interviewed by the Observer. In the interview, she accused Oxfam of support the BDS movement.
Some highlights from the interview:
**When asked by the interviewer if her support for SodaStream and her stepping down as ambassador for Oxfam was a mistake. **
Scarlett: "No, I stand behind that decision. I was aware of that particular factory before I signed it."
Interviewer Really?
Scarlett: "Yes, and… it still doesn't seem like a problem. Until someone has a solution to the closing of that factory to leaving all those people destitute, that doesn't seem like the solution to the problem."
Interviewer: But the international community says that the settlements are illegal and shouldn't be there.
Scarlett: "I think that's something that's very easily debatable. In that case, I was literally plunged into a conversation that's way grander and larger than this one particular issue. And there's no right side or wrong side leaning on this issue."
Interviewer: "When I say a mistake," I say, "I mean partly because people saw you making a choice between Oxfam – a charity that is out to alleviate global poverty – and accepting a lot of money to advertise a product for a commercial company. For a lot of people, that's like making a choice between charity – good – and lots of money – greed."
Scarlett: "Sure I think that's the way you can look at it. But I also think for a non-governmental organisation to be supporting something that's supporting a political cause… there's something that feels not right about that to me. There's plenty of evidence that Oxfam does support and has funded a BDS [boycott, divest, sanctions] movement in the past. It's something that can't really be denied."
Interviewer: When I contacted Oxfam, it denied this.
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Contexts
Silence = Complicity:
For those who have passionately spoken out against other instances of genocide and massacres, yet fall silent when it comes to the suffering endured by Palestinians, their silence becomes a glaring indictment of the value placed on Palestinian lives and perpetuates a dangerous narrative that suggests Palestinian suffering is somehow less worthy of outrage, less deserving of empathy and less human than that of others.
By choosing silence in the face of Palestinian suffering, those with influential platforms inadvertently contribute to the erasure of Palestinian voices and experiences. They perpetuate a narrative of invisibility that allows the injustices inflicted upon Palestinians to continue unabated, shielded from the spotlight of global scrutiny.
Their silence sends a chilling message of complicity to the world – one that suggests Palestinian lives are expendable, their struggles inconsequential and their humanity negotiable. It emboldens perpetrators of violence and oppression, granting them impunity under the guise of indifference.
To remain silent in the face of Palestinian suffering is to betray the very essence of activism – the relentless pursuit of justice for all, without exception or equivocation. It’s a betrayal not only of the Palestinian people but of the universal principles of human dignity and equality and instead is a tacit endorsement of the dehumanization and marginalization of an entire population.
True activism demands consistency and integrity, an unwavering commitment to speaking truth to power and standing in solidarity with the marginalized and oppressed, regardless of geography or politics.
BDS Boycott:
The BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) movement is a global campaign which follows the worldwide boycott movement that led to the successful dismantling of apartheid in South Africa and therefore advocates for various sustained forms of boycott against Israel until it complies with international law.
Founded as a response to the rampant, ongoing and systemic dispossession, displacement, and disenfranchisement endured by generations of Palestinians, the BDS movement is in direct response to the relentless expansion of Israeli settlements, the imposition of discriminatory laws and the denial of basic rights to millions living under occupation, apartheid or in exile with no right of return.
Central to the ethos of BDS is the belief that every purchase and action carries a weighty moral responsibility. To buy goods from or actively support companies or organizations on the BDS list is to cast a vote in favor of perpetuating injustice, a tacit endorsement of the status quo of occupation and discrimination. It’s a direct violation of the collective conscience, a betrayal of the fundamental principles of human rights and dignity.
By pressuring Israel and its supporters by withdrawing support and capital, humanity aims to bring awareness to — and ultimately — end the occupation of Palestine, grant equal rights to all Palestinians and recognize the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes. This pressure also extends to any individuals and entities found to be complicit in the normalization, funding or support of Israel’s brutal occupation and 75+ years of ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
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