Still Against Censorship, even of TOTWK

A good interaction last night. Clearly this fight is not for lack of love.

A response I received from my commentary:
so i've only been following the progression of responses on this issue from a distance, so it's possible that there are new developments that i'm not aware of, in which case feel free to tell me that i'm missing some key information.

but censorship doesn't seem like the primary issue to me here. absolutely, the filmmakers have a right to freespeech and free expression, no matter how hateful or trans-misogynistic i ultimately find that expression to be. that said, deciding not support that work is not the same as censorship, though i know it can turn into a fine line. a film festival doesn't screen every movie submitted, it picks and chooses those it deems the best of the bunch. so in choosing to screen
TOTWK, it is, to an extent, endorsing the film. holding tribeca accountable for the content is chooses to promote is not the same thing as censoring the freedom of speech of the film makers who produced TOTWK. i get that boycotts can turn into censorship and it's a fine line to walk-- but when the immediate response immediately goes to freedom of speech and accusations of censorship (which is a pretty common response when something gets called out as hateful, offensive, etc.) we lose ground on which to have conversations about accountability and responsibility. the tribeca film festival has the right to screen any film it wants, just as the film makers have the right to produce whatever content they choose-- but as someone who believes this film does real, tangible harm to people i love and my community, there is no way i will support it or any organization that promotes it. that doesn't strike me as any different than our choices not to frequent certain businesses whose practices we disagree with, etc.


I responded:
The reason I characterize this as a dangerous censorship issue (which does real, tangible harm to people I love and my community too), is for one word in the press release. Remove. Remove from the festival.


 In my heart and I'm sure once I see it in my mind and likely every fibre of my being...I'm very sure we agree on the politics of why TOTWK is not a good film for anyone on any level. I'm firmly in the boycott position on that one, and I havent seen the movie yet. Okay. 


Protest. Make a movie about this movie and why it really hurts real people and screen it at the same time, illegally, on the wall above the Tribeca logo. That would be an amazing protest, no? DO IT!!!! I'm there!!!! I'm holding the projector!!!! 


But do not "remove" anything from any festival, lest we forget how our identities have been and are "removed" constantly from textbooks and history books and even library shelves. How that removal makes us feel isolated. How that isolation does real, tangible harm to people we love and ourselves too. 


Love, Scott Turner Schofield