SLOUGH, ENGLAND:

If Israel’s widespread brutality in Palestine has proven anything, it’s that protests, boycotts and heartfelt music are nothing more than a fly in the ointment. Activists, civilians and celebrities may take to the streets – or to their keyboards – but the bombs will continue to fall, lives will continue to be wasted and children will continue to be orphaned. All this despite the combined efforts of Artists4Ceasefire, rapper Macklemore with Hind’s Hall and the beloved celebrity boycott through Blockout 2024.

Then again, even the most dewy-eyed viewer wearing the most rose-tinted glasses in existence would have believed that a cultural boycott would never lead to a ceasefire. The purpose of speaking up when the victimized are unable to do so is just that: to speak up, spread awareness and call a spade a spade. Or, in that case, call this genocide genocide instead of “conflict.” Or “war”.

An open letter of boycott

Joining the fray in a desperate attempt to remind us all that the hell facing the Palestinians is not over, an open letter organized by the Palestine Literature Festival (PalFest) called on the publishing industry to boycott Israeli institutions that “remain observers shut up” to the ongoing crisis in Gaza.

According to The Bookseller, the boycott letter asks signatories to pledge not to “cooperate with Israeli institutions, including publishing houses, festivals, literary agencies and publications.” The PalFest letter, seen by The Bookseller, refers to the “emergency” situation facing Palestinians in Gaza and the “years of displacement” Palestinians have experienced. According to the letter, “culture has played a critical role in normalizing these injustices.”

The letter goes on to state that the signatories will not cooperate with Israeli institutions that are “complicit in the violation of Palestinian rights” or that have “never publicly recognized the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people as enshrined in international law.” More than 1,000 writers – both Pakistani and international – signed the open letter. These names include Fatima Bhutto, Mohsin Hamid, Saba Imtiaz, Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi and Kamila Shamsie, as well as Sally Rooney, Arundhati Roy, Rupi Kaur, William Dalrymple and Rachel Kushner.

A counter letter

If you think that the world of literature would attract little attention, you are about to be quickly disabused of that notion. A counter-petition in support of free speech has already been set in motion and has been signed by major figures in the entertainment industry, both in and out of print. Jack Reacher author Lee Child and actors Debra Messing, Mayim Bialik and Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne are among the signatories listed on the counter-petition.

“To achieve peace, we must humanize each other and build bridges between communities through the open exchange of ideas,” Child noted. “Literature allows for that. Boycotts prevent it”.

Big Bang Theory actor Bialik echoed a similar sentiment. “Silencing and sowing discord in this way reduces complex individuals to oversimplified caricatures, which only reinforces existing hostility and removes hope for peace.”

A concert went wrong

Balik may want to avoid polarization, but when it comes to this particular genocide, the ship has already sailed. When it comes to the ongoing atrocities in Palestine and the widespread spread of celebrity, fans and followers haven’t stopped seeking outspoken condemnations from anyone with a public following – as Radiohead frontman Thom discovered in Melbourne on Wednesday Yorke. Yorke is currently in the middle of his solo tour in Australia, and videos posted online show him walking off stage mid-concert after an argument with a man in the crowd who shouted: “What will it take to condemn the Israeli genocide of Gaza? “

As the tension builds, the full spectrum of the protester’s plea is inaudible – but with snippets that trickle in, the gist is clear. “There are already 200,000 dead, half of them children!” is heard screaming. “How can you be silent!”

A quietly angry Yorke can be heard replying into the microphone: “Come here and say it. Right now.” Letting out the profanity, Yorke adds: “Get on the f— stage and say what you mean. Don’t stand there like a coward. Come here and say it. Come on!”

The protester makes no move towards the stage and shouts once more: “How many dead children will it take to condemn the Israeli genocide in Gaza?”

The final question proved to be the final straw, with Yorke pulling out his guitar and stopping his set. “Do you want to p*ss everyone’s night?” the singer says as he leaves. “Okay, do it, I’ll see you later.” The disturbance led to a chorus of boos from the crowd, although they turned into cheers when Yorke returned to the stage shortly after to perform Radiohead’s Karma Police.

Demand for responsibility

According to the BBC, this isn’t the first time Radiohead has come under fire for its apparently pro-Israel stance. In 2017, the group faced pressure to cancel shows in Israel, prompting Yorke to withdraw.

“I have performed in Israel for over 20 years through a succession of governments, some more liberal than others,” Yorke said in a statement at the time, while defending the decision to go ahead with a planned concert in Tel Aviv . “We don’t support Netanyahu more than Trump, but we still sing in America. Music, art and academia are about crossing boundaries, not building them.”

In another case where he has not openly condemned the brutality against Palestinians in Gaza, Yorke’s bandmate Johnny Greenwood was accused earlier this year of “artwashing” for performing with the Israeli musician Arab Dudu Tassa in Tel Aviv. At the time, Greenwood stood by his decision and made his views clear in a statement on X. “No art is as ‘important’ as stopping all the death and suffering around us,” he wrote. “But … silencing Israeli artists because they were born Jewish in Israel does not seem to be any way to reach an understanding between the two sides of this seemingly never-ending conflict.”

The man who interrupted Yorke’s concert received little support from the crowd and was escorted off the premises by security. But as PalFest’s open letter proved, the views espoused by Yorke’s concert disruptor have the power to stir up strong feeling. Yorke has not openly declared his loyalties – although perhaps in this case, not declaring a side is no different from declaring one. However, whether or not a literary boycott will bring about change is an entirely different story.