A More Civilized Age will not be covering Andor Season 2 as planned, due the the ongoing boycott of Disney Plus by the BDS Movement.

This is a surprise to us, as it is likely to you and some explanation is required. Last year, the BDS movement targeted Disney Plus for boycott on the grounds that it has cast Israeli actors in its films who have been cultural ambassadors for Israel and do not support the Palestinian cause for liberation or justice. Additionally, Marvel films have made use of characters who have a history in the comics of being connected to positive depictions of Israel and its intelligence service, the Mossad.

We were not aware of this boycott when it was declared, and we were not aware of it when we covered Skeleton Crew earlier this year.

We are aware of it now, however, and in becoming aware of it, we had to make an affirmative choice that our ignorance had permitted us to avoid.

We were not agreed as to what that choice should be. However, what was clear was that if we went ahead with covering Andor Season 2 while this boycott was in place, we would be arriving at an unacceptable outcome. It was either demand members be willing to compromise their own values and do work they did not feel they could perform in good conscience, or it was to go ahead with a partial panel until we were again able to cover something that was not covered by a BDS boycott.

This has been a challenging moment for us. We are all firmly committed to the cause of Palestinian liberation and the end of the ongoing genocide perpetrated by Israel under the pretext of waging a war in response to the October 7, 2023 attacks. However, we have differences of opinion and standards of personal and professional obligations when it comes to how we respond to the Boycott, Divest, and Sanction movement and all its calls for action. Those differences were intensified by the compressed time-frame in which we had to have this discussion.

We include these details because it is important to acknowledge that on this point there is real disagreement among us which prevents us from making a more straightforward statement. Similar disagreements will certainly arise in the future, and our views will also continue to evolve and change. However, it’s also important to note that we can disagree pretty strongly and continue to work together to make AMCA as good as it can be, a show that every member can participate and take pride in.

But we do have news on what we'll be covering next. Beginning in May, we'll be kicking off our coverage of Knights of the Old Republic II. We'll have more info on how we'll be covering that game, what mods (if any) we end up using, and more soon.

We thank you so much for your patience. This has been as much of a surprise for us as it is for you, but we're going to focus on making the best possible show we can as we continue to move through the Star Wars catalog.

Support the show by going to Patreon.com/civilized!

Show Notes

Guide To BDS Boycott & Pressure Corporate Priority Targeting

Decolonize Palestine, a collection of resources for organizers and anyone who wants to learn more about Palestine

Hosted by Rob Zacny (@RobZacny)

Featuring Alicia Acampora (@ali_west), Austin Walker (@austin_walker), and Natalie Watson (@nataliewatson)

Produced by Austin Walker

Music by Jack de Quidt (@notquitereal)

Cover art by Xeecee (@xeeceevevo)