The manager of a cinema in Oregon has defended a controversial marquee message referring to Jews, insisting it was intended as social commentary rather than antisemitism. The display nevertheless prompted widespread concern and complaints from the local Jewish community, reports The Jerusalem Post.
The message, displayed outside the Lake Theatre and Café in Lake Oswego, near Portland, read: „Before there were the Jews, there was … ‘The Odyssey.'”
Although many people initially struggled to understand its meaning, local Jewish leaders quickly questioned why Jews had been singled out, particularly at a time of rising antisemitism in the United States.
Jordan Perry, the theatre’s manager, later told the Portland Tribune that the message was deliberately provocative. He described it as an „intentionally subtle” attempt to challenge what he believes is an excessive focus on antisemitism in public debate.
According to Perry, his intention was to question what he sees as the tendency to label criticism connected with Israel as antisemitic.
He told the newspaper that he believes contemporary antisemitism is „exaggerated”, arguing that accusations of antisemitism are often used to defend Israel’s actions in the Middle East and its political influence. He also said he wanted to express solidarity with discussions surrounding Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Iran and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), rather than focus on Jewish people themselves.
The remarks drew strong criticism from Jewish organisations in the Portland area.
Bob Horenstein, Chief Community Relations Officer for the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland, said the federation received more than 40 complaints about the display.
He argued that any public reference to „the Jews” carries particular weight at a time when antisemitic incidents are at historically high levels and said the wording was both historically inaccurate and deeply unsettling.
Historians generally trace the existence of Jewish communities to well before the period traditionally associated with Homer’s authorship of The Odyssey in the eighth century BCE.
Horenstein said he contacted the theatre and requested that the message be removed, but initially received no response. After Perry later explained his intentions publicly, Horenstein said the comments were even more troubling than the original display.
He rejected Perry’s assertion that antisemitism is overstated, saying it is not for those outside the Jewish community to determine whether concerns about antisemitism are justified.
Rabbi Eve Posen of Congregation Neveh Shalom in Portland also criticised the marquee, writing on social media that it highlighted a broader climate of anxiety among local Jews.
She questioned why Jewish people had been introduced into a message unrelated to Jewish history, particularly during a period of increasing antisemitic incidents, including recent reports of swastikas being painted on a local Jewish resident’s vehicle.
Following the criticism, the theatre briefly altered the display by replacing the words „the Jews” with „Waze”, a reference to the navigation app and possibly to Odysseus’s long journey. The message was later removed entirely and replaced with a standard advertisement for the film.
The Lake Theatre has previously attracted attention for provocative marquee messages. Earlier this year, Amazon Studios reportedly withdrew a documentary about Melania Trump from the venue after another controversial display, while a separate marquee promoting a Michael Jackson biopic referenced allegations of child sexual abuse against the singer.
The incident comes amid heightened concern over antisemitism in the United States, where Jewish organisations have reported record numbers of antisemitic incidents following the outbreak of the Israel–Hamas war.
Photo credit: Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures via JTA
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