August 2018
We are Israeli citizens who oppose the Israeli government’s policies of oppression, occupation, apartheid, and ethnic cleansing against the indigenous Palestinian people [1]. Our long years of anti-racist activism have brought us to the understanding that the most effective way to stop the apartheid system here is to boycott Israel. Therefore, we strongly support Palestinian civil society’s call for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS), aimed at ending the apartheid regime [2].
As we speak, Israel commits an ongoing massacre against unarmed civilian protesters in Gaza [3] and legislates apartheid laws [4]. Hence we are writing to ask you to heed the Palestinian call and cancel your performance in the Meteor Festival.
The producers of Meteor Festival claim the festival to be: “A visionary and cutting edge musical journey that surpasses borders and distorts time and space themselves” [5], yet in fact, your participation in this festival is nothing but surpassing borders, and it serves the government’s agenda of whitewashing its war crimes against the Palestinian population, by creating a "business as usual" atmosphere, wherein the status-quo, a reality of colonization and military occupation for Palestinians, becomes normalized. Maintaining this atmosphere relies heavily on creating a facade of Israel as a hip, advanced, progressive state with a vibrant and diverse cultural scene, committed to environmental issues. The Israeli government issues celebratory press releases and social media postings, directly linking international artists who perform in Israel to the State of Israel. As summed up by an Israeli official: "We see culture as a hasbara [propaganda] tool of the first rank, and I do not differentiate between hasbara and culture" [6].
Israel is becoming increasingly notorious as a place which forward-thinking artists, who care about equality and freedom, want nothing to do with. We are confident that this reality can also help convince companies to divest from Israel and contribute to making the Israeli government change its unjust policies, just as this international pressure did in apartheid South Africa. The matter, then, is in your hands too.
As Israeli citizens, we call on you to take a stance for real justice and equality. Forty years ago, festival organizers all over the world stood with South Africans struggling against apartheid, and endorsed the BDS campaign of the time against South Africa. Now, more than ever, international organizers of art and culture events are morally obligated to stand with the oppressed Palestinian people and help bring about an end to Israel’s policies of racism, occupation, and apartheid.
In view of the aforementioned facts, we ask you to cancel your participation in the Meteor festival. We will gladly address any questions or comments you may have.
Sincerely,
Boycott! Supporting the Palestinian BDS Call from Within
[3] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/15/calls-for-inquiry-into-israels-gaza-killings
[5] https://www.residentadvisor.net/events/1122491
[6] www.haaretz.com/print-edition/features/about-face-1.170267