The entertainment industry has become a breeding ground for anti-Israel sentiment as many artists have adopted the Palestinians as their cause de jour. Unfortunately, because of their visibility, celebrities are often given far more credibility than they deserve – no matter how inane, uninformed or malignant their opinions might be.
Roger Waters, who endorses the BDS movement, lobbies other musicians not to perform in Israel, and falsely accuses Israel of ethnic cleansing and apartheid, is by no means the only celebrity offender. Several years ago a group of artists and performers published a statement entitled, “Toronto Declaration: No Celebration of Occupation,” to protest the Toronto International Film Festival’s decision to include Tel Aviv in its “City-to-City Spotlight.” The list of signatories was lengthy and included, among many others, actors Julie Christy, Jane Fonda, Danny Glover and Viggo Mortensen, writer Alice Walker, and musician David Byrne.
The Toronto group claimed to be protesting Israeli apartheid and the “humanitarian crisis” in Gaza. However, Israel is not an apartheid state under any definition; and the so-called “humanitarian crisis” was shown to be nothing more than Arab propaganda.
If such activists were truly concerned about humanitarian violations in the Mideast, they would be protesting the harassment and murder of the Copts in Egypt or the persecution of women, minorities and political dissidents in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and most other Arab and/or Muslim countries.
Instead, they expend great energy defaming Israel, a country in which Arab citizens live where they want, speak and worship freely, vote in elections, and serve in government.
Apparently, the truth is no deterrent to self-appointed guardians of relative morality, who repeat malicious propaganda and attempt through unethical boycotts to silence all who disagree with them. Unfortunately, because artists and performers who slander Israel are usually involved in other progressive causes, they are uncritically absolved of any prejudicial intent by the stewards of political correctness.