New York, NY, October 17, 2015 – On Friday evening, 60 New York human rights advocates protested on the sidewalk outside a solo concert by Israeli singer Idan Raichel at the City Winery in Manhattan (Photos). Idan Raichel calls himself a cultural ambassador for Israel and is an outspoken and uncritical promoter of the Israeli army. Raichel’s actions support the Israeli government’s Brand Israel public relations campaign, which uses art and music to distract from Israel’s violations of Palestinian rights.
Join Adalah-NY and friends on Friday October 16 to protest a concert by Israeli musician Idan Raichel, an enthusiastic promoter of the Israeli army and supporter of the Israeli government. With chants and music by NYC’s Rude Mechanical Orchestra, we'll tell City Winery and NYC cultural institutions, art should be for liberation, not for whitewashing occupation!
In Stuttgart, Germany, on July 19, activists prepared to demonstrate outside his concert, but in the face of continuing protests, Vieux agreed to meet with them about his scheduled concert in Israel. The group also challenged his musical alliance with Israeli musician Idan Raichel, an absolute apologist for Israel’s apartheid policies.
According to their report, Touré was disturbed to learn that Raichel was not quite what he seemed. “We put it to him that Raichel had strong connections to the army and supported them without compromise. We asked how it was possible to talk of music bringing people together when he supported repressive policies and actions that sowed hatred in peoples' hearts.
July 16, New York, NY - Outside the Brooklyn concert of Malian musician Vieux Farka Touré this evening, human rights advocates held signs and handed out hundreds of flyers calling on Vieux Farka Touré to cancel his scheduled August 25 concert in Eilat, Israel.
