"The end of apartheid stands as one of the crowning accomplishments of the past century, but we would not have succeeded without the help of international pressure - in particular the divestment movement of the 1980s. Over the past six months, a similar movement has taken shape, this time aiming at an end to the Israeli occupation".
Desmond Tutu.
Wall of Silence is a new musician led campaign for the cultural boycott of Israel. This is why you should join:
Israel is the regional centre for all things cool, sexy and western – or so its government PR machine would like the world to think. Tel Aviv is promoted as a hedonistic, libertarian party city, frequented by many of the world's best known bands and DJs. This manufactured image matters to Israel. The implicit message is that the country is liberal and progressive. Music fans can dance, drink and pop pills long into the night, blissfully distracted from the immeasurable suffering endured by Palestinians living just 40 miles down the road in Gaza. In effect, music helps to drown out the cries of the oppressed in a society wilfully in denial of its role as oppressor. International DJs and musicians should no longer be complicit in this crime.
Those of us who are serious about engaging in the struggle for a better world need good strategies and tactics. The tactic of cultural boycott isn't always a good one. For example many British/US based musicians are opposed to the occupation of Afghanistan by coalition forces, but to ask them to boycott Afghanistan, Britain or the US would be meaningless. You cannot effectively boycott somewhere you never go to (Afghanistan), somewhere you have to go to (Britain/US), or somewhere with such a big domestic music industry that your decision would go completely unnoticed (US). That's not to say that there aren't lots of other things musicians can do and have done to support the Stop the War movement, but boycott is not one of them. Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine, by contrast, is one example of a situation where the cultural boycott - as part of a wider strategy of boycott, divestment and sanctions – is the right tactic.
Of course many musicians explicitly talk about political change when onstage in Israel. And some think that the boycott punishes the wrong people. Music fans, they argue, are among those most likely to oppose their government's policies. But international bands have been visiting Israel and singing about peace and unity for more than a decade. The situation for the Palestinians has only got worse during that period. No matter how progressive your particular fans may be, gigs do not take place in a political or economic vacuum. Beyond your fan base, a gig in Israel can only too easily be interpreted as an endorsement of business as usual in the apartheid state.
In truth, most of the opponents of the cultural boycott lack knowledge of what is really going on in the region. Or they simply do not care about the suffering of the Palestinians. Those of us who do care should join the Wall Of Silence campaign and publicly support the cultural boycott of apartheid Israel.
For more on the history of Israel and Palestine, and why we refer to Israel as an apartheid state, visit the Palestine Solidarity Campaign website and watch the videos below.
Israel is the regional centre for all things cool, sexy and western – or so its government PR machine would like the world to think. Tel Aviv is promoted as a hedonistic, libertarian party city, frequented by many of the world's best known bands and DJs. This manufactured image matters to Israel. The implicit message is that the country is liberal and progressive. Music fans can dance, drink and pop pills long into the night, blissfully distracted from the immeasurable suffering endured by Palestinians living just 40 miles down the road in Gaza. In effect, music helps to drown out the cries of the oppressed in a society wilfully in denial of its role as oppressor. International DJs and musicians should no longer be complicit in this crime.
Those of us who are serious about engaging in the struggle for a better world need good strategies and tactics. The tactic of cultural boycott isn't always a good one. For example many British/US based musicians are opposed to the occupation of Afghanistan by coalition forces, but to ask them to boycott Afghanistan, Britain or the US would be meaningless. You cannot effectively boycott somewhere you never go to (Afghanistan), somewhere you have to go to (Britain/US), or somewhere with such a big domestic music industry that your decision would go completely unnoticed (US). That's not to say that there aren't lots of other things musicians can do and have done to support the Stop the War movement, but boycott is not one of them. Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine, by contrast, is one example of a situation where the cultural boycott - as part of a wider strategy of boycott, divestment and sanctions – is the right tactic.
Of course many musicians explicitly talk about political change when onstage in Israel. And some think that the boycott punishes the wrong people. Music fans, they argue, are among those most likely to oppose their government's policies. But international bands have been visiting Israel and singing about peace and unity for more than a decade. The situation for the Palestinians has only got worse during that period. No matter how progressive your particular fans may be, gigs do not take place in a political or economic vacuum. Beyond your fan base, a gig in Israel can only too easily be interpreted as an endorsement of business as usual in the apartheid state.
In truth, most of the opponents of the cultural boycott lack knowledge of what is really going on in the region. Or they simply do not care about the suffering of the Palestinians. Those of us who do care should join the Wall Of Silence campaign and publicly support the cultural boycott of apartheid Israel.
For more on the history of Israel and Palestine, and why we refer to Israel as an apartheid state, visit the Palestine Solidarity Campaign website and watch the videos below.
