A movie theater located in Lake Oswego, Oregon, has drawn significant backlash for a marquee advertisement that many are calling antisemitic and historically inaccurate. The Lake Theater and Cafe displayed a message promoting Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" that read, "Before there were the Jews, there was... The Odyssey."
The message ignited outrage within the Jewish community, with critics pointing out that scholars generally date the composition of Homer's epic to the 8th century B.C., several centuries after the origins of Jewish history. The Jewish Federation of Greater Portland and local rabbis expressed their deep offense.
"The statement is historically false. More importantly, it raises a painful question: why invoke Jews at all? A clever movie promotion could have celebrated one of the oldest stories ever told without unnecessarily positioning Judaism as an afterthought or a comparison," Rabbi Eve Posen of Congregation Neveh Shalom in Portland wrote on Facebook. "In a moment when antisemitism is already at historic levels, casually inserting Jews into a narrative where we do not belong doesn't feel harmless. It feels like another reminder that our story is somehow expendable, that our history can be rewritten or diminished for the sake of a punchline."
Marc Blattner, President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland, told Fox News Digital that the theater responded to the press but not to direct calls and emails from the community, calling the manager's subsequent comments minimizing antisemitism "shameful."
Lake Theater and Cafe manager Jordan Perry, in a text message to The Lake Oswego Review, stated his intention was to challenge societal perceptions of antisemitism. He claimed modern-day antisemitism is exaggerated, often used as a defense for Israel's actions, and that his message was intended to provoke thought and suggest that issues related to the Middle East, rather than "the Jews" themselves, are the focus.
"My intention is never to influence opinion or fan flames, but to say: it’s okay to raise eyebrows, though I hope my messages reflect a depth of understanding others find in themselves but not always in the world around them," Perry told the publication. "Through the media I consume, I believe modern-day antisemitism is exaggerated, mostly as a defense for Israel’s actions in the Middle East and its involvement in our politics, and my intention in referencing Jewish people on the marquee was to prod at everything being seemingly antisemitic with a statement that couldn’t possibly be construed as antisemitic."
He added that his aim was "to push back culturally on what constitutes antisemitism, to signal, in solidarity, that it’s not about ‘the Jews,’ that it’s about Israel, and Palestine, and Lebanon, and Iran, and AIPAC. This is my ‘humor,’ this was the point, intentionally subtle, of what I put on the marquee."
Despite Perry's explanation, the message remained on part of the marquee on July 17, according to local reports. The theater has a history of displaying provocative messages on its marquee, some of which have also led to controversy. Previously, after advertising a documentary about Melania Trump, the theater posted messages that the theater claimed led to Amazon canceling its remaining showtimes. The marquee then read, "Amazon called. Our marquee made them mad. All Melania shows canceled. Show your support at Whole Foods instead."