Occupation 101: Voices of the Silent Majority

This film focuses on the prehistory of the current Israeli territory and its occupants as well as the changes that have occurred since 1947, mostly due to US backed Israeli policies and financing. The conflict has been characterized by sporadic warfare and violence since the inception of the Israeli territory. Occupation 101 portrays this violence but also shows cultural and political and personal impacts of the conflict. Graphical representations of the relative size and changes in territories occupied by Palestinians and Israelis provide a clear vision of the proportion of territory controlled by each group and how that has changed over time. International dimensions of the conflict include the prominence of Israel in US foreign policy, including military aid but also the less well understood influence of the Israeli lobby as well as the role of non-Jewish religious organizations in the US. Despite widespread international concern over the violence and human rights abuses, the United Nations has been rendered largely ineffectual in addressing this situation.