May 6, 2024

Screams Before Silence: Bearing Witness to the Violence of October 7


Bear witness to the systematic and horrific accounts of sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas during their October 7 terrorist attacks at a special screening of Screams Before Silence, the new documentary by Jewish philanthropist and activist Sheryl Sandberg. The Miami Jewish Film Festival, a Federation partner, is hosting the Florida premiere on Tuesday, May 28 at The Hub at Temple Beth Am in Pinecrest and Sunday, June 2 at MAR-JCC in North Dade. Both events are free with RSVP and will include a panel discussion.

The hour-long film, described by Sandberg as "her life's work," provides first-hand accounts from survivors, freed hostages, first responders, and legal, medical and forensic experts. What emerges is not only an understanding of the mass scale and barbarism of Hamas’ sexual attacks but also their deliberate, pre-meditated and methodical nature. The primary purpose of the rapes was not sexual gratification, but rather humiliation and terror. In her filmed interview, Professor Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, Founding Academic Director of the Federation-funded Rackman Center at Bar Ilan University, gets right to the point: “When the body of the woman is violated, it symbolizes the body of the whole nation,” she explained.

The Rackman Center — supported by both the Annual Greater Miami Jewish Federation/UJA Campaign through a Women's Amutot Initiative grant, and most recently the Israel Emergency Fund, which raised approximately $29.6 million for the national effort undertaken by the Jewish Federations of North America — is the leading organization of legal and social change for women in family law in Israel. Since October 7, they have been at the forefront of the important advocacy work at the United Nations and around the world to recognize the atrocities Hamas committed and to apply international law against the terrorist organization and seek justice for the survivors.

Sandberg’s advocacy extends not only through her fiscal support of millions of dollars to numerous important Jewish causes, it is also an important part of her day-to-day life, thanks in part to the strong Jewish upbringing by her parents Adele and Dr. Joel Sandberg, both of whom are longtime Federation donors. Dr. Sandberg is also a Federation Board member. Shining a light on the survivors and creating a vehicle that allowed them to share their stories is an important part of her instilled Jewish values. She encourages viewers to listen to the testimonies in the film and share them to “bear witness,” a sacred value in Judaism that enables followers to fight injustice on behalf of those who no longer can, while acknowledging their dignity and place in history. With most of Hamas’ victims silenced by murder, it is the singular way we can hear their screams.