On Saturday, June 24th, Arizona List will be hosting a one-time-only screening and Arizona theatrical premier of Under G-d, a groundbreaking new film by Peabody-Award-winning Jewish filmmaker Paula Eiselt (Aftershock, 93Queen). The film won rave reviews at its Sundance premier a few months ago, and this will be the first (and possibly only) in-person screening in Arizona.
As we approach the anniversary of the Dobbs Decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade, people are finding hope in a surprising place: Jewish leaders and community organizers using Religious Freedom Restoration Acts (RFRAs) to challenge abortion bans state by state.
Under G-d, Eiselt’s short-format documentary, weaves together the stories of a Jewish mother and activist in Indiana, a rabbi in Florida, and lawyers and interfaith leaders throughout the country fighting abortion bans in part by placing them in the legal and cultural context of religious freedom. Ironically, the very laws that might enable this effort are the RFRAs, which have been used mostly by conservative Christians to bypass civil rights protections in order to do things like refusing wedding cakes to gay couples or birth control coverage in their employee insurance programs. Under G-d gives viewers hope as we watch Jewish activists creatively use the very tools wielded so effectively by Christian nationalists, challenging the dangerous abortion restrictions sweeping the nation. In the process, modern-day Jewish heroes are leading these efforts to protect women, protect democracy, and preserve the separation of church and state.
As Florida rabbi Barry Silver says in the film, “The test is this: Are you going to use RFRA only to protect fundamentalist Christians and their intolerance, or do Jews get to use it too?”
This not-to-be-missed screening will be June 24th at 2:00 at The Loft Cinema, 3233 E Speedway Blvd. Rabbi Stephanie Aaron from Congregation Chaverim will lead an audience Q&A after the film. $10 suggested donation, tickets are available at the door and include free Eegee’s. Doors open at 1:30 and the film starts at 2:00. Tickets can also be preordered here.
Arizona List is a community of Arizonans committed to changing the face of power in Arizona by electing pro-choice, Democratic women. Any donations will go toward helping get more pro-choice women elected in Arizona.
Eric K. Carr lives in Tucson and is a Pushcart-Prize-nominated writer and poet whose work has been translated into six languages. He has worked with the Sundance Film Festival and Human Rights Watch Film Festival, with a focus on highlighting emerging technologies and minority voices in storytelling.
