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Magazine I Interview

Montana Tucker with the children who survived the attacks, while filming the documentary, “The Children of October 7” I Photos: Orit Pnini

saw this on TikTok, but thank you for educating me’. Then they go and share with their friends and family. So yes, it comes with a lot of criticism, but I never respond to a negative comment, I just continue to educate”. Only the truth will prevail In the face of the deniers and the ignorant, Tucker ceaselessly uploads content that educates and advocates for Israel. She goes out into the streets and talks to people, speaks at conferences, and shares videos with her millions of followers. “I am not a huge fan of the word ‘influencer’ but I think by being an ‘influencer’, the main thing is you’re supposed to ‘influence’. I’m so grateful that I built my platform of 14 million followers, but it does come with a huge responsibility. People literally say what happened on October 7 was justified, or people literally say that the rapes didn’t happen or that the kidnappings didn’t happen. That’s why I do everything I can to share the hostages’ stories, and to share the reality of Israel, so people can see/ hear it directly. Hey, I was there with my own two feet, with my own two eyes and ears, seeing everything, hearing everything. I’m always trying to unite all religions, all races, all sexual orientations, all walks of life. That’s always been what I’ve wanted to do with my platforms, even when it was just through music and dance. I wish that others would

follow this model of standing up for what is right and use their voices”. What was the most significant experience you had while filming the documentary, “The children of October 7”? “I met with children from the ages of 11 to 17 and every single one had the most heartbreaking, but heroic story. Some of their parents are still in captivity or some of them lost one or both their parents and loved ones who were murdered and tortured which they themselves, had to witness. And yet they still just want peace. They just want to live a normal life, be like normal children. They just want love. I will never forget their faces. I will never forget their stories. And I hope that by people watching my videos, and the documentary, that they will be just as impacted as I was”. What would you like to say to Am Israel and to the world? “I think we all need to stand strong and be proud to be Jewish and to stand for Israel no matter what and we need to UNITE and come together. Also, we need to try to have conversations with people that might not agree with us. We need to try to do everything we can to let people know that this is just standing for humanity. This is standing truly for what is right against terrorists. That’s why I’m continuing to go back to Israel as much as I can and to call for the release of the hostages and not stop until they are all home”. ˆ

other war. You just see how much hate people have inside of them, but you also see that this is not new. It’s always been there…. Anti-Zionism. There is also such a misconception about what Zionism really means. That’s why I keep posting and keep doing everything I can to combat that. Maybe it’s not as fast as we want, it’s not as great as we want, but when I do these videos in public where I go on the street and I hold up signs and have conversations with real people, I end up really having meaningful conversations, and perspectives can be changed. They say, ‘you know what, I didn’t really know that. I just Schwartz, and directed by Asaf Becker. The film was made possible thanks to a generous contribution from Jonathan Barsade and the AID Coalition and with the assistance of the National Public Diplomacy Directorate. “The Children of October 7” The documentary film “The Children of October 7“ tells the story of five children who survived the terrible massacre. This film will serve as a testimony for future generations, as it documents in real time, first hand testimonies of children who experienced horrors and at the same time demonstrated unimaginable resilience and ability to recover. Some of the interviews will be uploaded onto social media platforms. The 30-minute documentary, produced by Kastina Communications, is intended for an international audience, and will be marketed for viewing on television networks around the world. The movie is produced by Kastina Communications, Meny Aviram, Zameret Alexandrony, Mor Tregger & Eytan

20 ATMOSPHERE NOVEMBER 2024