Macy Gray is reconsidering the concerts she has planned for Tel Aviv. On Facebook, Gray had the following for her fans:
I'm booked for 2 shows in TelAviv. I'm getting alot of letters from activists urging/begging me to boycott by NOT performing in protest of Apartheid against the Palestinians. What the Israeli government is doing to the Palestinians is disgusting, but I wana go. I gotta lotta fans there I dont want to cancel on and I dont know how my NOT going changes anything. What do you think? Stay or go?
Before we go any further, this if fantastic. BDS opponents love to suggest that BDS stifles debate, but on the contrary, BDS fosters debate, and this is exhibit A. It's also noteworthy that Macy Gray clearly states her negative views of Israeli government policies. What the Israeli government is doing to Palestinians is, in fact, 'disgusting.' Well said, Macy.
Macy Gray's post went up on Monday and the feedback was sparse but largely supportive of her Tel Aviv concerts. The feedback significantly picked up today (January 19th) and took an overwhelming turn towards asking Gray NOT to perform in Tel Aviv. Go read the responses for yourself, and more importantly, give Macy Gray your two cents.
Note: You'll have to 'like' Gray's main page before you comment on the Tel Aviv concerts.
(h/t to @ibnezra 's tweet)
Macy — Tell your Israeli fans that you’d love to entertain them in Israel but cannot do so in good conscience as matters stand. Ask THEM to join the peace protests and protests against continued occupation, continued settlements, the wall, etc., ANY or ALL. Tell them we human beings are all one people and we all must live, with human rights, including Palestinians. If they agree, let them say so LOUD AND CLEAR. If they do not agree, then let them examine their consciences.
So far, the BDS supporting comments there gained the most thumbs up. And that is from co-’likers’ who have logged in.
Isn’t this one of the first artists who throws this up in the open? Which is a great thumbs up from me.
Macy Gray went to the same HS as me (western reserve academy) – but left. This is great news. I’m not a fan of her music but its good to see a public persona supporting human rights in this conflict.
She’s going, still a big step for her to do what she did.
link to twitter.com
L-48, agreed. She’s getting heat from both sides on her Facebook page, and a ton of hate from the Zionists. But would she have played Sun City? If not, she’s a hypocrite.
I gave her my two cents. At the time most of the comments came from the same Israel icon; all were 3rd rate hasbara.
She’s tweeted since her public question that she’s looking forward to seeing her fans in Israel shortly. Makes me wonder if she just sent out the question to her fans to stir up publicity for herself. Does she really see Rosa Parks in Palestine anymore than the black caucus in congress does? They don’t, or do a good job of hiding it. I doubt she’s like Cynthia McKinney, more like the black toadies to AIPAC.
Fantastic news! Here’s my contribution:
Jails, cages, and fears…
When will they go from here?
When will they stop?
I believe that war has brought us here
And we should be together, babe.
But we’re not.
I struggle hard but I’m dreaming of peace.
And won’t you help me to bring it?
I protest but on tear gas I choke,
Try to go to school but there’s checkpoints.
Though I try to fight it, it’s clear
My world crumbles while Israel controls me.
I may appear to be free
But I’m just a prisoner of their guns.
I may seem all right and sing and march and chant
But my smiles are just a front…
Just a front.
I play it off but I’ve lost my childhood,
And now I might lose my children.
I protest but on tear gas I choke
Try to farm my land and they shoot me.
Though I try to fight it, it’s clear
My world crumbles when you refuse to see.
Here is my confession:
I didn’t learn my lesson
Until I saw Palestine
With my own two eyes
Don’t make the same mistake
Don’t support an Apartheid state…
It’s not too late.
I’ve seen the trees and the children cut down.
Now don’t you see what I’m seeing?
I protest but on tear gas I choke
Try to leave but they’ve closed the borders
Though I try to fight it, it’s clear
My world crumbles until Palestine is free.
she probably needs the money too. obviously she should not go. very sad.
It’s not over yet annie.
Macy Gray may take this trip to Israel but she has started engaging w/ Palestinian activists on her twitter and wants to know more. It sounds like she’s relatively new to the issue and is finding the whole thing overwhelming (getting a lot of pro and anti-BDS messages on her facebook and twitter) which is to be expected. Until the point where I made a conscious decision to really look at and understand I/P after the Gaza Massacre I found it extremely confusing because mainstream media coverage was, and is, so terrible.
MG has already said she thinks what Israel is doing to the Palestinians is bad, so she’s half way there. It’s hard to say if this is a financial decision but I doubt it. Performers do feel loyalty to fans and some would see cancelling a concert just 3 weeks away as unprofessional. The good thing is she’s alive to the issue and talking about it. She may yet become a BDS ambassador. Person by person, that’s how it goes..
…and we have to take a long view of BDS.
I want MG to make her decision in good faith. That’s hard to do when you don’t fully comprehend the history/issues. Perhaps does her concert in Israel and also visits Gaza or the West Bank. In the long run the ‘seeing is believing’ factor may shift MG to a decisive position – that’s what I meant when I said she may yet become a BDS ambassador.
Macy Gray saying “I played a concert in Israel and visited the West Bank and what I saw there horrified me” is ultimately more powerful than MG saying “ugh the pressure from Israel/Palestine groups was horrid so in the end I cancelled my concert & put it all in the too hard basket”.
Let’s keep on top of this to see if “disgusting” remains her pubic characterization of what Israel does to the Palestinians.
Macy, a goose has no chance against a pig, however a hundred geese will conquer that beast!
Got my point?