** Director in attendance on April 26! **

** Omar Haggag and Ayah Natasha El-Sergany from Northwest Immigration Rights Project will join the Q&A with Erika Cohn **

Erika Cohn’s latest documentary tells the story of the first woman judge in the Palestinian Shari’a court in the West Bank, Kholoud Al-Faqih. Ten years after breaking through the glass ceiling, Judge Al-Faqih still faces institutional hurdles in her daily fight to represent women and families in court. Truly an inspiration, Kholoud fights on behalf of other women when they often do not have a voice.

Kholoud Al-Faqih knows that social change will only be possible if it is accompanied by educational change and she is on a mission to teach. To the woman who believes that there are also abused men, Kholoud answers with a smile and a simple but effective argument: if men are allowed to leave their house and wife, why couldn’t it be the same for a woman? To respond to indoctrination and brainwashing, Kholoud uses the power of words, presence and confidence. Inflexible when she is confronted by a man who contests her verdict, she is also sympathetic and comprehensive when she educates women on their rights over a cup of tea. At the end of the day, The Judge offers a strong and inspirational portrait of a Muslim woman and provides a different insight on the Palestinian justice system.