Matisyahu 'Proud' He Stood Up for Israel Against BDS Movement

[oberliner]

Matisyahu, the Jewish-American reggae singer, is not upset about being targeted by the international boycott movement against Israel and almost losing a chance to perform at a major international music festival. In fact, he says, “I’m glad that it happened in the end.”

On a visit to the Peres Peace Center in Jaffa this morning, Matisyahu told Haaretz: "I was given the opportunity to stand up for what I believe in, and as a proud Jew, to stand up for Israel.”

In August, Matisyahu, whose given name is Matthew Miller, was disinvited from the Rototom Sunsplash music festival in Spain after he rejected a demand by its organizers, under pressure from the international Boycott Divest Sanctions (BDS) movement, to clarify his position on Palestinian statehood. Following condemnations from the Spanish government and Jewish leaders worldwide, the organizers retracted their decision and Matisyahu eventually performed at the festival.

Asked whether he thought the BDS movement was anti-Semitic considering that it had targeted someone like him who is not Israeli, Matisyahu said: “I haven’t put too much thought into exactly what they are and why they’re doing what they’re doing. There’s probably a thousand different reasons why a thousand different people in that group are doing what they’re doing. Whether or not they’re anti-Semitic or they’re this or they’re that doesn’t matter to me so much.”

http://www.haaretz.com/life/music-theater/.premium-1.679225

[Little Tich]

1. He's a racist - I don't like him. n/t

[oberliner]

4. Not even remotely

"Regardless of race, creed, country, cultural background, etc, my goal is to play music for all people"

He is the very antithesis of the racists who would boycott and/or protest his performances.

[Little Tich]

5. Of course he's a racist, I wouldn't accuse him of being one unless I believed so.

I've already explained to you why I think he's a racist, so I'll just copy and paste that post:

Matthew Paul Miller has denied the existence of Palestine and he's expressed support for the Gaza blockade. While it's possible that he's just very ignorant, these are strong indicators for antipathy towards Palestinians as a group, which would mean that he's a racist. I've been trying to find a non-racist explanation for his statements, and the only other possible explanation would be deep ignorance. He doesn't seem to be ignorant at all from what I've read about him, so the conclusion is simple - he's a racist.

Matiasyhu on Palestine:

Well, as far as I understand, there was never a country called Palestine. There was the British occupation, but there was never a government. Palestine was a creation that was created within Israel, as Israel had already come about. That’s my understanding, but again, I’m not going to claim that I have the answer or the truth or the right knowledge.

Source: http://cornellsun.com/blog/2012/10/31/questions-for-matisyahu/

Matiasyhu on the Gaza blockade:

Oh boy," he says, fiddling with his grey beard and peyot. "I am blown away by the one-sided media coverage. Whether or not the ships should have been bringing aid to Gaza, those territorial waters belong to Israel - it's internationally agreed. They were warned repeatedly not to go there. But when the Israeli soldiers came onto the ships they were lynched; they were shot, stabbed, and beaten with poles. They were meant to be peace activists and they've got Molotov cocktails! Did you see the footage? It's not Israelis beating up peace activists - they're slamming the soldiers one at a time with metal poles!"

He is shouting now, and fiddling more intently with his peyot.

"Do you honestly believe that, if someone was in the English Channel, the British navy would do anything but blow the crap out of the boat, just blow it out of the water? But still people are going to think Israel behaved horribly. As it is, Israel gives tons of aid to Gaza. And they told the people on the ship to go over to dry land and they'd bring the aid with those people overseeing it. But they wanted to instigate whatever they wanted to. It's anarchy." He stops eating for a moment, then looks down. "No other country," he says with a heavy sigh, "would put up with the crap that Israel does."

Source: http://www.thejc.com/arts/music/33123/the-moment-when-matisyahu-lost-his-cool


Source: http://www.democraticunderground.com/1134110600#post14

[6chars]

6. He disagrees with you, clearly, but why call him a racist?

What exactly in the articles you quote are evidence of racism? Or is it just that anyone who is not condeming IDF for the boat thing is a racist? Or are you just comfortable saying it about someone without any evidence?

[Little Tich]

8. I'm glad you asked...

My opinion that Matthew Paul Miller / Matiasyhu is a racist has only been enforced since he was banned from performing in Spain, as he's been unable to hint of any reference to universal human values when it comes to things that are connected to the I/P conflict. For example, Jerusalem is for Jews only, according to him.

Here's my previous explanation of why I think it's possible to call him out as a racist on very scant evidence, and I haven't changed my opinion since:

Maybe I'm not giving him the benfit of doubt - he might just be an ignorant idiot...

It would have been better if there were more statements from Matthew Paul Miller that could conclusively prove that he's a racist. What clinched it was actually what Helen Thomas once said about Jews, that they should go home to Germany or Poland. I don't know if you know anything about her, but you could look her up. She was a respected White House reporter until one day that she really stepped in it. At first I didn't really think her statement was racist enough to warrant her removal from the White House press corps, but I realized later that there was a whole racist ideology behind her statement that must have caused her to say what she said, and it couldn't really have been said without that ideology.

It's not really possible to deny the existence of Palestine the way Matthew Paul Miller did without actually considering Palestinians to be inferior. It's about delegitimizing Palestinians as a people and also about their status as a nation and their right to nationhood. The statement effectively delegates the Palestinians to being just some random Arabs with no connection to the land.

It's also not possible to support denying the people in Gaza access to basic supplies and the right to live normal lives without being being racist. If the blockade was to stop weapons from entering Gaza, why was pasta considered contraband? There is no way that pasta can be weaponized (that I know of), and only a racist would support preventing pasta or other basic goods from entering Gaza.

So, by drawing on my experience on Helen Thomas, I think that Matthew Paul Miller is most probably a racist, and the onus is on him to prove otherwise.

Source: http://www.democraticunderground.com/1134110600#post21

[6chars]

9. that's a stretch

while racists say the sun rises in the east, many non-racists also think the sun rises in the east. he seems to me to be far from a racist. but i will bet he does not like hamas. i don't think matisyahu said anything about pasta. maybe rasta?

[Little Tich]

10. It could be that my argument is pure conjecture,

But it's the complete absence of positive statements about one side, while all comments about the other are in a positive context that gives off more than a whiff of bias. This together with my insight that some things can only be said in a context of certain beliefs puts Matiasyhu in the racist zone.

I really hope that I'm not biased and using a different standard for him than I would use for others. I know that I'm biased when it comes to the I/P conflict, but it's based on my complete dislike of right-wing nationalism, not ethnic bias (I hope).

[grossproffit]

2. He's amazing. An inspiration to millions.

Just fired up Jerusalem in his honor.

[leftynyc]

3. He now lives only about 20 minutes

drive from me. I'd go see him in a heartbeat if he plays nearby. And yes, bds is most certainly anti semitic and what happened with this artist showed that quite clearly. Thankfully the vast majority of Americans - including our elected reps - are too smart to get involved with that bullshit.

[King_David]

7. I am proud of him too

At that same festival the worst kind of Gay hating homophobic scum was allowed to perform.