Actress Susan Sarandon claims blacklisted over pro-Palestinian rally, antisemitism

Sarandon claimed that she had intended to express concern over antisemitic attacks and made “a terrible mistake” in the way she phrased it.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF NOVEMBER 11, 2024 14:36

Susan Sarandon pro-Palestinian rally, Capitol Hill (photo credit: CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES)

Actress Susan Sarandon claims she was blacklisted from Hollywood because of her antisemitic statements in an interview with the Sunday Times.

In November, Sarandon joined a pro-Palestinian rally in New York City, where she stated that “a lot of people were afraid of being Jewish at this time and are getting a taste of what it feels like to be a Muslim in this country, so often subjected to violence.”

In the interview, she stated that she had intended to express concern over antisemitic attacks and made “a terrible mistake” in the way she phrased it by implying that “until recently Jews have been strangers to persecution when the opposite is true”.

Since October 7, American Jews have experienced a historic “explosion of anti-Jewish hate,” according to findings by the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) to mark the first anniversary of the Hamas attack.

The ADL survey found that there have been more than 10,000 antisemitic incidents in the US since October 7, which is the highest number ever recorded in the history of the league. 

DEMONSTRATORS RALLY in support of Palestinians, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, outside the White House in November. Several previous Biden organizers have organized pro-Palestinian demonstrations across the United States, the writer explains. (credit: Elizabeth Franz/Reuters)

Sarandon said in the interview that after her statements from the rally were publicized the fallout was immediate, “I was dropped by my agency, my projects were pulled,” she says. “I’ve been used as an example of what not to do if you want to continue to work.”

Continued antisemitism 

Despite her firing and public apology, Sarandon has continued to share her pro-Hamas views.

In April, Sarandon was approached by a fan where she denied Hamas’s October 7 atrocities and defended the terror group’s decision to reject multiple ceasefire agreements. 

“We know that all of those myths about babies in ovens and the rapes…” Sarandon said in the video recording.