Without public financial support, most of the artistic events and venues simply cannot survive.
By PEGGY CIDORThe Soviet leadership with (standing at left) Central Committee secretary Andrei Zhdanov. (Leader Joseph Stalin is standing second from right.)(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
In the postwar Soviet Union, the powerful Central Committee secretary Andrei Zhdanov developed a doctrine that became the basis for a policy banning any cultural expression that criticized (or simply didn’t sufficiently praise) the Soviet system. Thus, “Zhdanovism” denotes the attempt to impose political censorship on the arts.City council has witnessed repeated cases in which members representing religious or haredi positions have objected to certain artistic events, arguing that the municipality – which represents all the residents – cannot support an event that would offend these residents, using their taxpayer funds.Roughly, there have been three major lines of objection. Haredim are opposed to anything that desecrates the Shabbat and fails to conform to the rules of modesty. National-religious and right-wing residents are opposed to any cultural event that desecrates the state or the IDF. Secular residents (mostly left-wingers) are opposed to anything that could be interpreted as religious or nationalistic “proselytism.”This could leave us with a rather reduced number of artistic events, and in many cases it turns out that objections are based on erroneous interpretations or false fears.The latest controversies have been over the content of one of the Khan Theater’s plays and the topics presented at the Barbur Gallery in the Lev Ha’ir (Mahaneh Yehuda) neighborhood.Regarding both these venues, there were repeated requests at the budgeting committee to cancel all of the city’s planned financial support for this year. Council member Arye King (United Jerusalem) argues that a play that shows disdain toward IDF soldiers (as at the Khan) and an exhibition in which Arab residents of Jerusalem claim to be deprived of rights and under occupation (as at the Barbur) should not be allowed, or at least should not be financed by taxpayers.At the last meeting of the budgeting committee, held on May 19, King failed to prevent these two events but succeeded in spearheading what others fear to be the first step in some local type of Zhdanovism – or more simply, censorship of artistic events. King requested and won support for the establishment of a committee to decide which kind of events could or could not be allowed.Here again, King succeeded in only part of his goal – such a committee will indeed be formed, but without representatives of political parties.Hanan Rubin (Hitorerut), the head of the committee and himself a religious man, agreed regarding the establishment of the committee but managed to exclude political representatives.Apparently, Rubin believes that if there are no political representatives on the panel but only people identified with the arts and culture, their decisions won’t be influenced by political parties and their representatives.In this way, the committee (no one knows how long its establishment will take and who will have the right to approve or reject its proposed members) will rule only on whether an artistic event deserves support from public monies or not; in no case will it have the authority to allow or prevent any event.For some, this is still Zhdanovism, only hidden behind a committee – and who will sit on this committee and which interests they will serve, no one knows. For others – King, more specifically – it is a first step in the direction of victory, since this is the first time that an official body will have the power to influence which events will or will not obtain public support.Without public financial support, most of the artistic events and venues simply cannot survive.For Rubin, however, the decision is far from being a first step toward censorship.
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