Young Fathers bullied by zio-controlled German festival to renounce support for Palestinian rights

Young Fathers bullied by German festival to renounce support for Palestinian rights

Ali Abunimah Activism and BDS Beat 11 June 2018

Young Fathers at the UK’s Rockaway Beach music festival in 2015. (Paul Hudson)

A German music festival is trying to bully artists into dropping their support for Palestinian human rights.

The Ruhrtriennale festival is threatening to cancel the 18 August performance by the Scotland-based band Young Fathers unless they publicly renounce the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement for Palestinian rights.

“This McCarthyite political testing should be opposed by all who care about free speech,” PACBI, the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, stated.

.@ruhrtriennale festival in Germany is demanding that UK group @Youngfathers distance themselves from the Palestinian-led BDS human rights movement before their performance can go ahead. This McCarthyite political testing should be opposed by all who care about #freespeech.

— PACBI (@PACBI) June 10, 2018

Young Fathers courageously withdrew from @popkulturberlin festival last year, along with seven other artists, after that festival refused to drop their partnership with the Israeli embassy. Four artists have so far pulled out of #popkulturfestival this year (see @BoycottPKBerlin)

— PACBI (@PACBI) June 10, 2018

We urge conscientious artists -- and supporters of human rights and free speech around the world -- to show solidarity with @Youngfathers, to oppose @ruhrtriennale festival's attempt to shield Israel from criticism over its policies of apartheid, occupation and ethnic cleansing.

— PACBI (@PACBI) June 10, 2018

It appears that Young Fathers is being targeted because it is one of a number of acts that withdrew from last year’s Pop-Kultur Festival in Berlin, over that festival’s acceptance of sponsorship from the Israeli embassy.

PACBI is urging “conscientious artists – and supporters of human rights and free speech around the world – to show solidarity with Young Fathers, to oppose the Ruhrtriennale festival’s attempt to shield Israel from criticism over its policies of apartheid, occupation and ethnic cleansing.”

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