Highlight Films presents: The Black Hebrews- After forty years in the Negev desert, the Back Hebrew community of Dimona is about to establish the first Black Hebrew Kibbutz in Israel.
In the Negev desert of Israel resides a group of first rate International Musicians - mostly African Americans, who came to the land of Israel in search of their Jewish roots and in order to create a new life filled with music focusing on redemption and purity of life style.
This year they celebrate 40 years since their exodus from urban America, as Israel marks 40 years since the Six Days War.
On May16th and 17th, 2007, they marked their exodus out of the ghettos of America, away from the racial tensions of the days of Martin Luther King. On the same day they also celebrated their arrival to Israel after years of struggle for recognition and citizenship, by establishing their first Kibbutz in the Negev desert, at a time when the Israeli Kibbutz movements are running out of life.
The Kibbutz will grow organic vegetables and nurture the musical talents of its community. They are said to be decedents of the Hebrew tribes. They keep Jewish laws and a vegetarian diet, but most striking is the community's commitment to music. These first rate musicians and singers have ties to Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Whitney Huston and others .They have played with artists all over the world.
In the Negev desert, the Black Hebrews create their own "positive and redeeming" music – a blend of soul, gospel Jazz African, Calypso Reggae rhythms and sounds. In 1967, the Israeli government did not know what to do with these American musicians and their relatives who came from the ghettoes of Chicago to the land of Israel.
In the late 70's early 80's, after many attempts to deport group members, the army surrounded the community with tanks. The Black Hebrews started a hunger strike and refused to leave. After a long struggle, Israel gradually tolerated and finally accepted the group. In 2000 they finally received citizenship and in 2006, the Israeli public chose Eddy Butler - a member of the community - to represent them in the Eurovision contest. Today the Black Hebrews begin to build their first Kibbutz and export the kibbutz-modeled community to other parts of the world. New communities of Black Hebrews spring up in the US, Africa and the Caribbean’s.
The film will focus on the music and the new kibbutz telling the community's story through some of its musicians and their families.
Director: Lamya Steiner-Lahud
Read an article about Erykah Badu in Israel written by the Director for the Jerusalem Post here.
