And earns the undying respect and admiration of celebrities like Montel Williams, who congratulated the recipient on Twitter for giving Donald Trump’s “#Muslim ban [sic] the ass whooping it deserves.”
On Sunday, Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi was presented with the award for Best Foreign Language Film for his movie “The Salesman.” The award had to be presented in absentia because Farhadi had said in advance that he would not attend the award ceremony owing to his country having been singled out in Donald Trump’s executive order: Iran is the sole nation named in the ban from which migration to the U.S. is on hold indefinitely.
Farhadi’s actions, which included a statement read by a surrogate that heaped insults on the country saluting his work, was probably a motivating factor in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences selecting him for an Oscar.
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Here, via the Los Angeles Times, is Farhadi’s statement, read on his behalf by engineer Anousheh Ansari, the first Iranian in space:
It’s a great honor to be receiving this valuable award for the second time. I would like to thank the members of the academy, my crew in Iran, my producer Alexandre Mallet-Guy, Cohen Media, Amazon and my fellow nominees in the foreign-film category.
I’m sorry I’m not with you tonight. My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S.
Dividing the world into the “us” and “our enemies” categories creates fears. A deceitful justification for aggression and war. These wars prevent democracy and human rights in countries which have themselves been victims of aggression.
Filmmakers can turn their cameras to capture shared human qualities and break stereotypes of various nationalities and religions. They create empathy between us and others. An empathy which we need today more than ever. Thank you.
Perhaps Farhadi has somehow managed not to notice that executions, torture, and inhumane treatment are still a daily occurrence in his homeland, according to Human Rights Watch’s 2017 World Report. Iran is also a chief exporter of radical Islamic terror, which is why the country tops the list of nations affected by the U.S. president’s travel ban.
Naturally, Hollywood elites and other liberals were ecstatic over Farhadi’s finger in the eye. Here are some of their reactions:
Asghar Farhadi did not attend the #Oscars out of respect for the Iranians and people in six other countries affected by the #MuslimBan.
— ACLU (@ACLU) February 27, 2017
Asghar Farhadi missed accepting an Oscar to make an important point. And I support him. #Oscars
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) February 27, 2017
Asghar Farhadi’s absence from the #Oscars2017 is a beautiful protest against #MuslimBan https://t.co/1OAAXi2ZTr
— Anna Boegehold (@anna_boeg) February 27, 2017
You have to wonder whether these self-hating Americans ever remove their heads from their butts long enough to read a credible news report.
Howard Portnoy contributed to this report, which was originally posted at Conservative Firing Line.
