Tag: Israel

DEC 16, 2013 - Roger Waters, the man who was the main driving force of Pink Floyd, has "sparked a fury" according to the Guardian website by comparing Israelis to Nazis. I actually agree with him. When I was watching the movie "The Pianist" years ago, afterwards I turned on the news and there was Israel erecting walls and closing Palestinians off into ghettos. Whooosh, right over their heads. The IDF does use very harsh, brutal and violent force, very similar to Nazis. Israelis totally believe the ends justify the means, similar to Nazis. Read more on the Guardian website here.  (photo credit: Eddie Berman/CC)

AUG 24, 2013 - Activist-musician Roger Waters of Pink Floyd fame has written an open letter to fellow musicians asking them to stand with him and boycott Israel for the Apartheid-type treatment of Palestinians living in the West Bank. Their lives are totally disrupted as a result of Israel's illegal and hostile takeover of native lands for their "settlements". In the letter Waters touches on a lot of subjects. He mentions the Trayvon Martin shooting and how he applauds Stevie Wonder for taking a stand against Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law and his call to boycott Florida. Waters explains how for the past 8 years he has been part of BDS, or Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions, "a non-violent movement to oppose Israel's occupation of the West Bank and violations of international law and Palestinian human rights". He has pronounced they have found Israel guilty, "independently, by international human rights organizations, UN officials, and the International Court of Justice, of serious breach of International law."

Roger Waters states the obvious, that our governments and the United Nations are unable or unwilling to act, so "it falls to civil society and conscientious citizens of the world, to dust off our consciences, shoulder our responsibilities, and act." Read the whole letter on ElectronicIntifada.com here. What do you think? Leave a comment or start a conversation on our Justice Through Music Facebook Page.  (photo credit: Takver/CC)

MAY 9, 2013 - An organization calling itself "Heartbeat" wants to use music to bring young Israelis and Palestinians together in peace, and use music as a tool to bring this about. They mission is to use musicians to build understanding and to transform conflicts. They talk about how "fear, violence, ignorance and a pervasive lack of trust" has led to the current political and social atmosphere between Israelis and Palestinians. They state, "Most Israelis and Palestinians have only encountered the other side through televised reports of extremist violence, soldiers at checkpoints, or politicians..." Heartbeat intends to use music as a bridge to break this divide, and bring people together. Heartbeat believes, and so does JTMP, that "Music has an amazing ability to connect people, build trust and inspire hope in the darkest of places.  Modern, popular music has long been the voice of change all around the world and a powerful means for youth expression and nonviolent action. By bringing together young Jewish and Arab musicians and strengthening their voices, we are working to build a global culture of trust, compassion, and respect." Read more on the Heartbeat website here.  (photo credit: Heartbeat.fm)