Opinion Analysis by Layan Eissa, Contributor

November 13th, 2020

The past couple of centuries have shed some sort of light on the importance the world holds for the Arab community’s humanitarian justice, which is little to none. One of the most controversial UN–identified countries that has been instigating much of the harm inflicted is israel. In their attempt to ‘restore their lost land’ after the Partition Plan in 1947, they had resorted to aggression instead of peace against the countries of Palestine and Egypt in the 9 years that followed. As Egypt has peaceful alignments with israel at this very moment, what I will be discussing is of deeper meaning to the Egyptian community, something for the people.  
Cultures all over the world have been subject to some sort of disrespect when it comes to Hollywood and the representation of communities and their history, and so it happens yet another injustice has taken place. Gal Gadot is set to play the role of Cleopatra, the ancient queen of Egypt, in the upcoming Patty Jenkins film. I’m going to be discussing how this casting is wrong and offensive on several levels.

Gal Gadot is a Jewish – israeli actress and model, she has had a very religious and israeli upbringing and so, she has grown to have a deep passion for her home country [1]. At a young age, she had joined the iDF, israel Defense Forces, and served the mandatory two-year military service as a fitness instructor; being this deeply involved and devoted to Israel [2], it is not shocking that she is currently heavily involved in its politics and Pro the government and everything it stands for. All the while this seems noble, the history between the Egyptians and israel is too prominent. 
Over the past few years, the two countries have had a complicated history, ranging from 4 wars to the peace treaty held in 1979, years later, making Egypt the first Arab nation to formulate relations with israe [3]l, which was viewed to be a betrayal to Palestinians and what Egyptians stand for. Despite Abdel Fattah Al Sisi’s, Egypt’s current president, somewhat peacefully established relations, the two countries are certainly not socially friendly. 

As a start, this dates way back to Egypt’s second president, Gamal Abdel Nasser. Not only was he very pro-Palestine, a very big advocate for social justice and highly against imperialism, but also made it very publicly clear that relations with israel will not be completed and that it IS personal and, as a result, a lot of Egyptians have carried the same stance, to this current day. With the evolution of generations, Egyptians have firmly stood by their opposition of relationships with israelis due to their respect for their culture and history, familial influence, Palestinian friends, their rocky history, etc... 
In May 2015, a public opinion poll was administered which showed the deep hatred held by Egyptians for israelis, ranking israel the most hostile state among the 26 mentioned states mentioned in the poll[4].

 With that being said, choosing a pro-israeli actress that endorses all this violence and aggression upon innocent lives to represent a nation that her country has inflicted pain upon without their permission is highly disrespectful to not only the Egyptian community, but the Arab nation as well. Not only is she pro-israel, but she is a firm supporter of the occupational force held by israel in Gaza, she even took it upon herself to gloat and praise them on social media post a brutal conflict with the Palestinians [5]. For someone that has previously stated that ‘you give your freedom away for a while. You learn discipline and respect’ after serving in the army [6], it’s quite hypocritical seeing as to she publicly advocates for the suppression of Palestinians in Gaza, showing no respect whatsoever for the lives that are lost at the hands of the government she so proudly supports. 
Egypt’s peaceful relations with israel are strictly political, it does not in any way encourage any sort of friendship or approval of the israeli regime against Palestine and the Middle East. Egyptians definitely do not stand by it. 

It is understandable that Hollywood is all about business and that suitable actresses are chosen based upon a strict set of criteria; however, if the project at hand is meant to represent the ancient culture and history of a nation, the people within that region must approve of the person representing them. When it comes to movies about the ancient queen Cleopatra, there seems to be a paradigm of whitewashing habits regarding the actresses chosen to represent her in the past, including Elizabeth Taylor and Claudette Colbert [7]. This is just one of many examples of how the cinema overtakes foreign cultures for its own saviorism.

It is not uncommon for Arabs to be belittled and their voices suppressed by the European and American communities; however, there are lines that are not meant to be crossed solely for maintaining mutual respect between both parties. Being a part of the Egyptian community myself, I’m certain that the disrespect I personally felt was also felt by others and I’m just as certain that it will remain unheard. 

References

[1] Https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/gal-gadot. (n.d.). Retrieved November 03, 2020, from https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/gal-gadot

[2] Https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/gal-gadot. (n.d.). Retrieved November 03, 2020, from https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/gal-gadot

[3] https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/mena/sisi-uae-israel-deal-will-help-regional-stability-1.1063431

[4] https://teachmideast.org/articles/review-relations-israel-egypt/

[5] https://www.newindianexpress.com/galleries/entertainment/2020/oct/25/cleopatra-controversy-explained-is-jewish-gal-gadot-becoming-egyptian-queen-in-reel-unfair-whitewa-102983--13.html

[6] https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/gal-gadot

[7] https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/oct/14/gal-gadot-cleopatra-backwards-step-for-hollywood-representation