American singers
Beyonce Knowles and Jennifer Lopex who are set to perform in Israel this summer,
have reportedly been urged by activists to boycott their performance in
solidarity with the plight of Palestinians.
By Thursday, at least
two petitions against Beyonce's rumored concert date in Tel Aviv had been
launched, while social media users attached the #canceltelaviv hashtag to posts
as they called on the pair to support a boycott. Neither of the singers have
given any official statement regarding the status of their performance as of
yet.
Al Jazeera contacted the management teams
for both artists and is yet to receive a response."There have been several
news stories indicating that Beyonce's management is in final negotiations for
a concert in Tel Aviv," Evan Greer, the activist who launched the
"Tell Beyonce not to play apartheid Israel!" petition, told Al
Jazeera. "The best thing for Beyonce's management to do would be to
publicly clarify that she will not be performing in Tel Aviv, and issue a
statement of solidarity with the Palestinian people," Greer added. She
further gave some insights from the past, saying, "Notable musicians like
Elvis Costello, The Pixies, Carlos Santana and Gil Scott-Heron have all
cancelled performances in response to calls, to join the boycott.” She further
added, "Each time a major artist like this cancels a show, it brings much
needed international attention to the situation in occupied Palestine.".
Whether the two celebrities put down their
performances or go ahead while making a stand of their own, is now to be seen.
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