American Jews lambast Roger Waters ahead of concerts
Community group in Washington hits out at Pink Floyd star for his support of the BDS movement
British musician and anti-Israel campaigner Roger Waters was criticised by American Jews ahead of his planned shows in the capital.
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington produced a video criticising Waters’ support of the BDS movement against Israel.
The video was released Friday, ahead of Waters’ scheduled concerts over the weekend at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.
Activists in other cities also are targeting his upcoming shows, including in Nashville and Philadelphia, the Washington Post reported.
BDS movement will not bring peace. BDS is not the answer. RT to demand that @rogerwaters stop. pic.twitter.com/Nn0QnnC7hB
— JCRC of Greater DC (@JCRCgw) August 4, 2017
“Music can change the world. Music breaks down walls,” the video states. “Roger Waters should know that. Instead he’s using music to divide people.”
“It’s too bad that Roger Waters doesn’t understand that peace can only be achieved through dialogue and engagement. BDS will not bring peace. BDS is not the answer. More dialogue, more respect, more music is,” the video also says.
“This is a sort of welcoming party for Waters,” Ron Halber, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council, told the Washington Post about the video. “We want him to know when he arrives in D.C. that the sort of hateful language that he’s peddling and the myths he engages in are going to be met with fierce resistance.”
Waters, the former Pink Floyd frontman, is scheduled to appear at the Nassau Coliseum in New York on Sept. 15-16. Nassau County lawmaker Howard Kopel asked the county attorney last month to determine whether the arena’s lease requires compliance with the county law adopted in May 2016 that prevents the county from doing business with any company that participates in the economic boycott of Israel.
Waters went head to head with Radiohead earlier this summer after he publicly called on the band to cancel its July concert in Tel Aviv. The band played the show.
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