The indie rock band Big Thief has canceled two concerts in Israel that were scheduled to take place in July. Palestinians had urged the band to embrace the BDS movement and cancel the shows.
The move comes less than a week after the band put out a statement defending their decision to play in Tel Aviv, where bassist Max Oleartchik grew up and currently lives. “We are well aware of the cultural aspect of the BDS movement and the desperate reality of the Palestinian people,” it read. “In terms of where we fit into the boycott, we don’t claim to know where the moral high ground lies and we want to remain open to other people’s perspectives and to love beyond disagreement. We understand the inherently political nature of playing there as well as the implications. Our intention is not to diminish the values of those who support the boycott or to turn a blind eye to those suffering. We are striving to be in the spirit of learning.”
A new statement posted to social media explains the band’s change of heart.
“Since announcing these shows in Israel we have been in constant dialogue with friends, family, BDS supporters, allies, Palestinians, and Israeli citizens who are committed to the fight for justice for Palestinians,” it reads. “It has been the only thing on our minds and in our hearts.”
“Our intent in wanting to play the shows in Tel Aviv, where Max was born, raised, and currently lives stemmed from a simple belief that music can heal,” it continues. “We now recognize that the shows we had booked do not honor that sentiment.”
Big Thief’s decision was celebrated by human rights organizations on social media. “We salute Big Thief’s courage and their willingness to listen to the oppressed,” said the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) in a statement. Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) tweeted, “BDS Victory!..CJPME would like to thank Big Thief for acknowledging the cultural boycott and showing respect to the Palestinian people.”
The Barby, the Israeli concert venue Big Thief was scheduled to perform at, attacked the band in a social media post, calling them “a bunch of miserable spineless musicians who are afraid of their own shadow,” They also referred to BDS as “Nazi fear boycotts” and wished Big Thief “all the evil in the world.”
Big Thief played Tel Aviv in 2017 and was scheduled to return in 2020 before the COVID pandemic.
Kudos to Mark Ruffalo for once again standing up for the Palestinians!!
Hollywood’s Mark Ruffalo Calls out PayPal’s Discrimination against Palestinians – Palestine Chronicle
“Hollywood’s Mark Ruffalo Calls out PayPal’s Discrimination against Palestinians” June 8, 2022”Hollywood A-lister, Mark Ruffalo, has called out PayPal Holdings for its discrimination against Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip, who are denied access to its digital payment platform, the Middle East Monitor reported.
“A vocal critic of Israel’s apartheid against Palestine, he wrote on Twitter:
“He also attached a link to a petition urging PayPal to offer its services in the Palestinian territories.
“Organized by SumOfUs, an international NGO that seeks to counter the power of big businesses, the petition reads, ‘SumOfUs members like you made a huge difference in getting Ben & Jerry’s to be the first large global corporation to pull out of the illegally Occupied Palestinian Territory in years.’
“The petition adds that almost half of those living in Gaza are unemployed, causing many to look to the internet to earn a living.
“It calls on readers to ‘tell PayPal to stop discriminating against Palestinians and offer its services to everyone in Gaza and the West Bank’.
“Following his post, the American Hulk actor, who has previously weighed in on the Palestine issue, was praised for not shying away from condemning Israeli abuses and institutionalized discrimination that violate international law.
“Last year, the 54-year-old actor had stated it is time for sanctions to be imposed on Israel to free Palestinians after the Israeli court issued mass eviction orders of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem.”
“The Barby…attacked the band in a social media post, calling them “a bunch of miserable spineless musicians who are afraid of their own shadow,” They also referred to BDS as “Nazi fear boycotts” and wished Big Thief “all the evil in the world.””
Wooooooow! This is the equivalent of swiping left on someone on Tinder only to find out a day later that they are a certified psychopath that tortures animals and beats and abuses all of their partners.
This should be a clarion call to ALL artists who perform, or who are considering performing, in Israel. Israel’s true nature and beliefs are on full display here, and the message is clear. They’ll smile and lie and pretend to be nice as long as they can use you to make them money, as long as they can use you to prop up the paper-thin façade that Israel is just another normal western style country, and as long as you shut your big fat goy mouth and not dare criticize Israeli Occupation, Apartheid, and it’s mistreatment, oppression, and dispossession of millions of Palestinians.
They are saying loud and clear for ALL artists willing to hear it, “You are NOT an artist. You are NOT an individual. You are NOT a person with feelings, beliefs, and independent ideologies. You are a TOOL. A tool for Israeli Hasbara. A tool to perform for and please our first-class Jewish citizens only and make them feel like they are connected and adored by the outside civilized world and to normalize their malignant Zionism. Question this in the slightest and you are nothing less than a spineless and despicable evil Nazi”