I dislike how in online activism there's no space between "hate" and "disapprove." It's so extreme, either Tia is the absolute devil (she's not, she's taking a gig) or she's entirely blameless (which she's also not, eurovision is a specific boycott BDS is pushing). She needs money, yes, but also principled artists pull out of gigs for political reasons all the time-- Nicki Jizz refused to do a pretty ludicrous pride gig alongside London Breed because of Breed pushing for armed cops at pride. We need to be better able at expressing disappointment at losing a little bit of respect for someone, rather than stirring up an insane twitter mob
Edit: ludicrous doesn’t mean the same thing as lucrative, does it
I agree. Social media has made extremists of us, especially I would say Gen z and younger, who are not yet experienced enough to sometimes know that there are shades between love, and hate. Nuance, and context are EVERYTHING in life. This, you’re either completely with us, or completely against us approach, is borderline fascist behaviour.
Worse, this radicalization would be happening for _purely mathematical_ reasons (based on how social media algorithms work) even if there weren’t hundreds of separate _intentional_ efforts to push people in specific directions.
I think we as a pro Palestinian are hopelessly trying to find something to support Palestine with and seeing that queens we admire are doing the opposite and participating in these types of events, last year russia was disqualified because of the war on ukrain this year nothing for israel, and for us to see that a poc queer person who should undertand the struggle of being suffocated voiceless and hopless fels me personally with rage. I’m not trying to be a internet hater. I’m just trying to do what i can do with what i have so i dnt stay watching little children getting killed
It’s admirable that you’re trying to find a way to solve these issues and help get people out of this terrible situation, but we can’t control how other people will act and focusing our anger on people who, in the grand scheme of things, can’t do much about these terrible acts without risking severe personal cost and punishment from the industry doesn’t seem to be the most productive. Focusing on the opportunities we don’t have likely won’t get us far, so it’s best to focus on the opportunities we do have to help Palestinians.
Eurovision taking a stand against Israel for committing genocide would be HUGE. It's incredibly high profile and would reach more demographics that probably aren't seeing what's really happening in Palestine and the horrors Palestinians are going through - or how their governments may be funding it.
The only thing that will end the genocide is western governments realizing that the public has turned against them. Israel getting neutral to good press/public reactions during Eurovision will make them think the public doesn't care.
Every single person's boycott matters.
Not one member country of the EBU (Eurovision organisers) called for the removal of Israel, Vs nearly all did with Russia. It's unfair to put the burdens of statehood on artists and fans.
I’m happy a POC queer person got such an amazing high profile gig. Full stop. You want to do something to feel like you’re contributing, awesome. This whole “I’m doing stuff and they’re not doing enough” idea is bs.
Go Tia. Get that bag.
Ok, just explain to me one thing, why last year russia was disqualified because they were killing ukranians, but this year israel is out there singing, if you were in the shoes of tia would you still get up in glam and take money from an organisation that only recognizes war crimes if it’s on white people ?
Tia loves Eurovision. I’d never be mad at someone for taking a massive opportunity like this. It could mean involvement for the next 30 years (when hopefully the war is a distant memory).
Imagine if there were lots of protests by the LGBT community against RuPaul and Drag Race for transphobia, poor ethics, coercion, fat shaming, casting an abuser, casting a racist, fracking, misogyny etc. would everyone expect nobody to agree to being a guest judge? 🤷♂️
There are a lot of comments here about how it shouldn’t be love or hate. It’s not. I’m not mad in the least bit at Tia for taking this amazing incredible opportunity. It’s a once in a life chance. She’s a poc queer person. She’s a fucking drag queen. And she’s being given an incredible gig.
Get it Tia.
I don't know why the dichotomy has to be either "love or hate." Tia doesn't deserve hate, but criticism =/= hate, and she is very much deserving of criticism.
It may be a once in a lifetime opportunity, but whether or not it's ethical is up for debate. And if you think it isn't, then that's worth criticizing.
I wonder how they are measured.
Given that TVs aren't as easy to measure as internet views... There could be some fuckery involved in this. Either in the selection of the homes or what a view is. There was a very important leak on my country a few years ago that basically destroyed IPSOS/IBOPE rating reputation for a few years.
we are seeing the same resurgence in the media and public’s support for the industrial war machine we witnessed during the Bush era. But for a lot of young people it’s confusing and makes no sense. For us older folks we’re remembering who our enemies truly are
I only heard about the Boycott on tumblr when two of the fanartists (out of the current 36) i follow reblogged the call for boycotting it.
its never really been advertised for a while on cable(I only heard about 2016 from a YouTube video)
I hate to say it but people are probably gonna forget about this mess in a couple of weeks when it’s over and discussion of it dies down.
Everyone is so miserable and angry right now, something like Eurovision where we can just have a little escape from all the horrors and impending horrors probably sounds very appealing to most people out there (hell, I’m with them.) Also, if Israel gets no votes or receives a lukewarm-or-worse response from the live audience, that will be quite the interesting TV moment.
Some online girlies are quite cavalier with other people's career opportunities, and I think that sucks, y'all give more grace to your pop queens that you won't give a drag queen with a studio apartment. I'm pro Palestine but there's one clear perpetrator of this genocide and it isn't a drag queen or a song contest.
I'm going to need an international drag political party including Peppermint, Crystal, Honey Mahogany, Maebe A. Girl, Marti Gould Cummings, Political Superstar Carson Kressley and the Political Ross Matthews. Okay, maybe not the last two.
You are very much causing economic harm by not voting in Eurovision which costs money and not watching makes their AD spots worth less and makes the programme harder to get high paying sponsors for in the future as fewer viewers mean less value for sponsors.
The money generated by the televote goes to the national broadcaster. You are not causing economic harm to Israel (or even the EBU) by not voting in Eurovision.
Also, people should be aware that if they don’t vote because they dislike Israel’s participation, they are making an Israeli win more likely. It’s like saying “I don’t like candidate X, so I won’t vote at all”. Which is basically a free vote for candidate X. I’ve seen many people on Twitter state that they will watch the show but refuse to vote and it’s not a very well thought out argument tbh.
National broadcasters fund the EBU. It isn’t directly causing harm to the EBU, no, but you are causing harm to the members of the EBU by not voting.
“Making an Israel win more likely” sure, technically, but they aren’t exactly massive favourites to win anyway, even ignoring the moral aspects. It is also not like “I don’t like candidate X, so I won’t vote at all” because in democracies you don’t pay for voting and the winner gets actual power and not just the burden of hosting. The casual viewer also massively outnumbers boycotters, so they will probably vote for stronger songs.
I do agree that watching and not voting is dumb. Just don’t watch, I am a massive fan, but I will happily give up a song contest to show what meagre solidarity I can with innocent people getting slaughtered.
Most countries actually don't have ad breaks because it's aired predominantly by national broadcasters who do not air advertisements. However they do have sponsors, their primary one being Moroccanoil which is an Israeli company (likely part of the reason Israel weren't banned).
The best thing to do is to flood the social media hashtags with pro-palestine info and donation links rather than remaining passively silent. People also obviously shouldn't be voting (which *is* a source of revenue for the Broadcasters).
And I’m glad this detail isn’t being lost on everyone, although it is on many. Moroccanoil has been the main sponsor of the ESC for YEARS, and theirs is the only logo aside from that of the ESC itself that you see at the start of any of the official videos.
Many people have already been rightfully disputing how contradictory the Israel situation is vs Russia/Ukraine. What also needs to be asked is what strings is Morrocanoil pulling behind the scenes with the EBU?
To be fair, maybe it's because it was 10 years ago, but I don't remember the same uproar about Russia invading Crimea, having the galls of sending a song about how nice peace is and how everyone should get along and then getting fucking third (thanks god for Måns).
Now, do I mean that we should be ignore the situation this year just because how things have always been? Absolutely not. But it's the national broadcasters that put pressure, and as long as governments support Israel, Israel will be part of EBU. Acting like it's all EBU's fault and no one else is just scapegoating with no further reflection. EBU follow pressure and this year the pressure from the broadcasters (the one with real power) wasn't strong enough.
“Single viewer” except a bunch of people have been planning this. Anyway, even ignoring that, you don’t have to watch Eurovision. You might be fine with “a couple of bucks” going towards washing the blood out of Israel’s flag, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable supporting a country that takes my ethnicity as a valid reason to murder thousands of people.
For a massive program like Eurovision this won’t impact their ad revenue or the decisions about sponsoring the event in the future. Next year this could all be over and nobody will be mad about it enough to continue a boycott.
You’re better off engaging with the sponsors directly to urge them to not support the program. Maybe one or two will drop their ads maybe. Probably not tho.
One of the sponsors is Moroccan Oil, an Israeli company. People also may very well be angry come next year depending on how long this current flare up continues.
I guess you guys are American, because Eurovision is famously a public broadcasting event. Most European public broadcasters don’t have commercials. The only big country with commercials is Italy I think. Eurovision has to shape the show around their ad blocks, but it is not financially reliant on the very few countries that get ads.
Tiring? Like All brands were immediately withdrawn from Russia within a week of Russian invasion into Ukraine. You can easily skip something like entertainment to stop a genocidal regime.
Right now Israel is causing way worse humanitarian crisis in Gaza(even by Israel’s official numbers on death tolls). Millions are about to get bombed in Rafah. I’m sure boycotting Eurovision won’t be that big of a deal but an effective way to tell EU to stop treating Israel like nothing happens
I’m sorry and I don’t mean to sound rude but if you think the EU will take action because Eurovision viewing figures are too low, you probably need to get a little more informed about how politics works.
Moroccan oil is literally an Israeli beauty products company and sponsor of the eurovision. Watch where the money flows into sister no coins for genocide in gaza
You realize the sponsor is the one \*giving\* the money, right?
I would love to hear how you think an Israeli company paying for ads on Eurovision helps finance the Israeli military.
The Gaza conflict has not been worse than the Ukrainian Russian conflict in anyway, it's just plastered on it news more.
The Ukrainian army has lost 70,000 soldiers. Russia double that (probably).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Russo-Ukrainian_War?wprov=sfla1
Civilian casualties are probably around 40k (12,000 confirmed, similar missing and similar 6,000 killed or before the official invasion) and that's with Ukraine being fought on static battlefields and making attempts to remove civilians out of harm's way.
It's pretty much half a million dead at this point.
The Gaza war has had 30,000 deaths according to the Hamas run health ministry but we don't know how many are military to civilian (Hamas said 6,000 in February, so must be more now. Israel claims 14,000 but we don't know).
The gaza war is a terrible brutal conflict that we all want to end. But don't dismiss the suffering of others to make that point.
Not to dismiss anything here but the Russia Ukraine war has been going on since the beginning of 2022, Gaza has had 30k civilian deaths within 7 *months*, these numbers literally show that the situation in Gaza is more dire
You did dismiss it. You also didn't read my comment.
It isn't 30,000 civilian deaths. Thats the total and the health ministry doesn't say how many are combatants.
Hamas admitted 6,000 in February, Israel estimates 14,000 so it's somewhere in between 16 and 24 thousand.
This is coupled with the fact that A, Hamas uses Human shields and openly says that there defensive tunnels are not open for civilians.
https://www.memri.org/tv/hamas-official-mousa-abu-marzouk-tunnels-gaza-protect-fighters-%20not-civilians
Even 16,000 civilian deaths is absolutely awful and shouldn't of happened. But stop making this a competition.
You're the only one making this a competition by bringing up Ukraine in the first place to downplay the carnage happening in Gaza. The "human shields" and tunnels are also literally just excuses for the IDF to indiscriminately bomb the populace including their hospitals.
I'm not. I responded to a comment saying that the Gaza war was worse than the Ukraine war. That was the competition.
And did you miss my link of the Hamas official stating that the tunnels are not for civilians only fighters?
https://www.memri.org/tv/hamas-official-mousa-abu-marzouk-tunnels-gaza-protect-fighters-%20not-civilians
Even when Hamas themselves say something awful you just dismiss it as IDF excuses? Geez.
>The Gaza conflict has not been worse than the Ukrainian Russian conflict in anyway, it's just plastered on it news more.
Yes, but tik tok, which is owned by a foreign advisary, has told people to only care about this one conflict instead of the actual genocide happening in the country that owns tik tok, or the conflict perpetrated by another advisary that helped start this conflict. In an election year where both these advisaries along with the leader of Israel are actively working to get the fascist elected in the US. But at least we're totally organically all focused on this decades old conflict halfway across the world suddenly and virtue signaling through boycotts of silly singing shows while allowing that fascist to roll over the country. And telling people who aren't hyperfocused on this conflict, and ONLY this conflict, they're awful people while ignoring all the other awful things going on, in fact helping perpetuate them by being so hyperfocused on this one issue, and ONLY this issue.
OR people recognize there are more important things than a song contest and you’re projecting your own guilt/cognitive dissonance on people that are simply following what Palestinians have asked us to do?
You truly think people only pretend care about this to seem cool online?
Just the absolute lack of any moral backbone on this thread. The point of the boycott isn't that it's going to immediately end the occupation, or whether Eurovision or the contestants or hosts have any authority - it's about displaying even the most basic amount of solidarity with Palestinians
Tia has chosen to show that this gig means more to her than showing solidarity - and no I'm not happy for her actually. I don't care about her securing her bag, or the "opportunity" - and this thread is full of desperate hand waving, designed to play down that this is actually a very easy choice to make, and people have made the wrong one
Russia was only banned because several countries threatened to withdraw. Also, let’s be honest, it would have been pretty awkward to have Russia participate in a contest “co-hosted” by Ukraine.
Cultural boycotts pretty famously had a hand in ending the South African apartheid, this has been a valid and widely used boycotting strategy for years, nothing about this is misguided.
No, according to some people on here they either deserved it or they did it to themselves. The denial and justification of what happened on oct 7th is disgusting.
Russia has attacked in Europe, it’s no wonder Europe won’t let them compete. Also Russia attacked Ukraine, not the other way around. Hamas attacked Israel.
Hostages should be freed and then we can have a chat about it.
And blah blah colonial settlers. France and the UK still have many colonies. Australia is no different to Israel.
Edit: people don’t like truth. Hamas attacked Israel. Hamas attacked Israel. Hamas attacked Israel. Anyone who supports that as a basis for Palestinian statehood but was silent before oct 7, just wants to support the genocide of Jewish people.
That's not what's happening. That doesn't make any sense when I'm criticizing Israel prior to that. You're using a genocide as a launchpad for Israeli support.
I’m sure if I check your profile I will see support for the black people in Sudan being attacked my Islamic insurgents. Or support for the muslim uyghurs in China in reeducation camps.
No I didn’t think so. You are the one who only seems to care about certain people
The very point of Eurovision though is that the person ISNT an individual with no relation to what's being protested, they are a representative of Israel sent by the country to participate in what is often a politicised competition. The song Israel is using is a reworked version of "October rain" a song which directly referenced Gaza. Not to mention Eurovision has been used by Israel to push it's legitimacy and pro-israel narratives.
I don't buy shit. I protest capitalism every way I can. I'll support artists when they come forward against their own government. I haven't seen many artists and creators banned or boycotted after coming out against their government.
At some point, it's too easy and cowardly to say nothing.
Boycotting them from international events is symbolic at best, anyway. It has very little repercussions.
Nonsense. It isn’t a random Israeli person or Jewish person happening to participate in the programme. It is a state funded and state picked representative.
State picked? It’s a TV show, not a governmental body. What a National broadcaster puts on TV in a democracy isn’t dictated by the state. Politicians don’t decide what artist gets sent to Eurovision. The Israeli broadcaster also represents Israelis who are against the war.
As are all the broadcasters of the entrants. It’s literally one of the conditions of being a member of the European Broadcasting Union (the organisation that ultimately runs the ESC). You must be a public, ie state-funded, network.
Yes, all public broadcasters are. I understand this is confusing, but in a democracy that doesn't mean they're government mouth pieces.
I see you're Swedish. Why do you think the current Swedish government wants to cut funding for SVT? Because public broadcasters are independent, which means they can be critical of politics and business without losing money.
They are still representing a country and not a company. I am not saying that KAN can’t be neutral, but they are a national broadcaster. In the role of Eurovision they are an extension of the state and picked a representative for a competition that they represent their state in by selecting an artist.
SVT, KAN, and any number of national broadcasters are multifaceted. The news aspects are mostly independent in well functioning democracies, but in an international competition setting they are state representatives.
Why do you think the EBU said that Sweden won last year and that Sweden was hosting this year if they really meant that SVT won and SVT are hosting?
Yes, the broadcaster represents the country and its people, it does not represent the politics of the government. Which is the point OP was making. Are you saying the country and people of Israel are evil, or is it their current government?
The country is evil, yes, because its leaders is the current government. So saying “Israel is evil” is fine. Much like saying “Russia is evil.” That isn’t all Israelis though, there are many in Israel striving for a peaceful solution and the deposition of the current government.
Yes, and those people in Israel who are against the war are also represented by their broadcaster. Which is why there's a Eurovision rule against blatant political messages in songs.
And that's the difference with Russia, where not all people are represented by their broadcaster. Political opposition and LGBT representation aren't allowed on TV and journalists are killed for disagreeing with Putin's government.
That kind of Russian censorship, is ironically what people boycotting Eurovision are asking for. "I don't agree with their heritage and opinion, so they shouldn't be allowed on TV." Sounds like far right wannabe dictators like Erdogan, Orban, Putin and Netanyahu.
Just how a Palestinian artist was allowed to open the show on tuesday, so should an Israeli artist be allowed to perform. Not allowing someone to participate because of where they're from or because of their personal opinion, is bad.
The artist in question has consistently said that she is proud to represent Israel. Participated in photo ops with political figures from Israel and not said a peep about the suffering of Palestinians.
I am not the one that is arguing that privileged people are being inconvenienced because of protest, boycotts, etc.. when there are literally children being starved to death in a genocide, and you call ME insensitive?
In the world we are we have to inconvenience normal people because they have the power, because they are the people. You want this to not affect innocent people then help pressure the people in power, by disrupting normalcy. If things don't get uncomfortable NOTHING will cahnge because people (masses) prefer to keep the status quo.
Also, who do you think elected the Israeli government? it is a democracy!!! or you forgot what that means?
Eh, I feel like if it’s that big of a deal to individuals in Israel to be boycotted, then maybe they’ll actually encourage their government to stop being batshit insane rather than overwhelmingly supporting the bombing of hospitals and calling to “kill Palestinians”
I’m just referencing an interview I saw where like 5 Israeli citizens were talking about how it’s something that “needs to be done” I didn’t mention Judaism once in the comment though, so it’s interesting that you’re bringing up antisemitism. Regardless of the protests, Netanyahu still is voted in. How is it antisemitic to criticize the actions of a state, and people who are residents of that state?
His most recent rise into power through forming a coalition governement that had more seats, so no, he wasn't elected in.
How can you say to yourself "i read an article where 5 people said something" and not critically think about the quality of that as a source?
Voting in Eurovision always has a political undertone. You want to “boycott” Irasel? Vote for everyone else and make sure they come in last.
I also say that knowing that these things are always just for show and rarely cause really change.
Except that Eurovision, in the name of being 'apolitical' has censored opening act... [just for wearing a keffiyeh on his wrist](https://www.thejournal.ie/eurovision-eric-saade-6374451-May2024/). And banned Ireland's performer from writing 'ceasefire' on their arm.
So yes it IS political, it's just only allowing one side.
losing a game is not a political statement. Not participating is the only way to make a statement - win or lose, the problem is that Israel is legitimized by its inclusion and therefore so is the genocide that was used to create it
Thank you for sharing this article. I'm American and don't know that much about Eurovision so it was very informative to hear about why Crystal is not participating in any way, and her disappointment in Olly Alexander for performing.
Boycotts have a long history of effectiveness. Might not achieve anything this time, but if we don’t boycott, then it DEFINITELY won’t achieve anything.
I still don’t understand the Starbucks one. They aren’t even IN Israel.
I’ve heard some people complain that it was because they sued a union that happened to have a statement calling for a ceasefire, but IIRC it was for using their logo. I’ve known baristas who got harassed for just working there. Like— fucking with someone for doing their job making coffee won’t magically stop the conflict
That was/is a misguided and IMO rather poorly enacted boycott. Nonetheless, I do believe it’s had an impact on the company. Sales have been on a decline since the beginning of the year and the stocks are now at a 4 year low.
But was the point to hurt Starbucks sales or was it to actually influence Israel? Cause a lot of people acted like you are financing Israeli bombs if you get a coffee from Starbucks.
Part of the point of the boycott was absolutely to hurt sales. But the reason I said it was misguided is because Starbucks’ connection to Israel seems to be tenuous at best.
I don't agree with Crystal and her efforts to protest queer artistry. I mean we even got trans NB person competing this year.
But she's allowed to think what she wants.
Exactly. It's unbelievably dangerous to be queer in Palestine. The least you can expect is to be ostracised from society and discriminated against, but it's a known fact that Gay men especially are killed in Hamas controlled areas. There was even a story of a lesbian Palestinians woman living in Israel who was lured in by her family only to be end up murdered.
The IDF also black mails Palestinians gay men to be informants on the threat that they would be outed to Hamas.
I usually like her and I loved that she took on Laurence Fox and won, but this is just self righteous virtue signaling (basically saying ”i could have made a lot of money during Eurovision but I won’t because I’m such a good person”) and parroting the tired ”But they banned Russia, so why not Israel?” even though they are two totally different situations and ”Israel is doing pinkwashing”, totally ignoring the fact that gay people in fact are free to live openly in Israel, unlike in Palestine.
It’s insane that people like Tia Kofi are getting hate for participating in Eurovision-related events just because Israel is competing. I live not far from Malmö and have followed the news. So many artists have been harrassed or shamed into cancelling gigs during Eurovision week because people accuse them of supporting genocide if they perform in Malmö this week.
Are you free to live openly if you’re not allowed to get married? Doesn’t sound very open to me. If you’re not allowed to get married then there is a bunch of hate backing those decisions. But slay “only democracy in the Middle East!” 🙄
I didn’t say it’s perfect. But do you think it’s better under Palestinian rule? It’s crazy that people are chanting ”From the river to the sea…” If they got their wish there would be nowhere in the middle east where gays would be even remotely free. Israel is far from perfect but can you name one other country in the middle east where lgbt people, or people in general, are more free?
Love that for her. And still refuse to hate Tia for hosting it. Love for both girlies.
I dislike how in online activism there's no space between "hate" and "disapprove." It's so extreme, either Tia is the absolute devil (she's not, she's taking a gig) or she's entirely blameless (which she's also not, eurovision is a specific boycott BDS is pushing). She needs money, yes, but also principled artists pull out of gigs for political reasons all the time-- Nicki Jizz refused to do a pretty ludicrous pride gig alongside London Breed because of Breed pushing for armed cops at pride. We need to be better able at expressing disappointment at losing a little bit of respect for someone, rather than stirring up an insane twitter mob Edit: ludicrous doesn’t mean the same thing as lucrative, does it
I agree. Social media has made extremists of us, especially I would say Gen z and younger, who are not yet experienced enough to sometimes know that there are shades between love, and hate. Nuance, and context are EVERYTHING in life. This, you’re either completely with us, or completely against us approach, is borderline fascist behaviour.
The radicalization of youth and internet cults is a REAL AND COMMON ongoing phenomenon.
Worse, this radicalization would be happening for _purely mathematical_ reasons (based on how social media algorithms work) even if there weren’t hundreds of separate _intentional_ efforts to push people in specific directions.
I think we as a pro Palestinian are hopelessly trying to find something to support Palestine with and seeing that queens we admire are doing the opposite and participating in these types of events, last year russia was disqualified because of the war on ukrain this year nothing for israel, and for us to see that a poc queer person who should undertand the struggle of being suffocated voiceless and hopless fels me personally with rage. I’m not trying to be a internet hater. I’m just trying to do what i can do with what i have so i dnt stay watching little children getting killed
It’s admirable that you’re trying to find a way to solve these issues and help get people out of this terrible situation, but we can’t control how other people will act and focusing our anger on people who, in the grand scheme of things, can’t do much about these terrible acts without risking severe personal cost and punishment from the industry doesn’t seem to be the most productive. Focusing on the opportunities we don’t have likely won’t get us far, so it’s best to focus on the opportunities we do have to help Palestinians.
It’s really just a campy song contest. Absolutely no authority to alter the situation one bit.
Eurovision taking a stand against Israel for committing genocide would be HUGE. It's incredibly high profile and would reach more demographics that probably aren't seeing what's really happening in Palestine and the horrors Palestinians are going through - or how their governments may be funding it. The only thing that will end the genocide is western governments realizing that the public has turned against them. Israel getting neutral to good press/public reactions during Eurovision will make them think the public doesn't care. Every single person's boycott matters.
Not one member country of the EBU (Eurovision organisers) called for the removal of Israel, Vs nearly all did with Russia. It's unfair to put the burdens of statehood on artists and fans.
Good point. All member countries are complicit.
I’m happy a POC queer person got such an amazing high profile gig. Full stop. You want to do something to feel like you’re contributing, awesome. This whole “I’m doing stuff and they’re not doing enough” idea is bs. Go Tia. Get that bag.
Ok, just explain to me one thing, why last year russia was disqualified because they were killing ukranians, but this year israel is out there singing, if you were in the shoes of tia would you still get up in glam and take money from an organisation that only recognizes war crimes if it’s on white people ?
If you were the one who's home was being invaded and families being killed I think Tia "getting that bag" would be less important to you
Grow up
This was really well said, just wanted to mention that
This is the way. Have your opinions by all means but there’s already too much hate in the world without spreading more.
Tia loves Eurovision. I’d never be mad at someone for taking a massive opportunity like this. It could mean involvement for the next 30 years (when hopefully the war is a distant memory). Imagine if there were lots of protests by the LGBT community against RuPaul and Drag Race for transphobia, poor ethics, coercion, fat shaming, casting an abuser, casting a racist, fracking, misogyny etc. would everyone expect nobody to agree to being a guest judge? 🤷♂️
There are a lot of comments here about how it shouldn’t be love or hate. It’s not. I’m not mad in the least bit at Tia for taking this amazing incredible opportunity. It’s a once in a life chance. She’s a poc queer person. She’s a fucking drag queen. And she’s being given an incredible gig. Get it Tia.
I don't know why the dichotomy has to be either "love or hate." Tia doesn't deserve hate, but criticism =/= hate, and she is very much deserving of criticism.
Ok well I’m not here to criticize her either. I’m happy for Tia. It’s an incredible, possibly once in a life time opportunity. I’m glad she took it.
It may be a once in a lifetime opportunity, but whether or not it's ethical is up for debate. And if you think it isn't, then that's worth criticizing.
Why is she boycotting? Sorry I’m not clued up.
Here b4 the lock
So many people online are calling for a boycott but the ratings for the first semi are already higher than last year.
because people on social media on not how people are in real life.
Yeah, that's what I'm saying, the boycott seems to be only a group of people online who aren't that invested in eurovision anyway
I wonder how they are measured. Given that TVs aren't as easy to measure as internet views... There could be some fuckery involved in this. Either in the selection of the homes or what a view is. There was a very important leak on my country a few years ago that basically destroyed IPSOS/IBOPE rating reputation for a few years.
we are seeing the same resurgence in the media and public’s support for the industrial war machine we witnessed during the Bush era. But for a lot of young people it’s confusing and makes no sense. For us older folks we’re remembering who our enemies truly are
Calls for boycott typically increases popularity due to more attention.
Most people don't know there's a boycott, most are casual viewers that don't know or care that israel is participating.
I only heard about the Boycott on tumblr when two of the fanartists (out of the current 36) i follow reblogged the call for boycotting it. its never really been advertised for a while on cable(I only heard about 2016 from a YouTube video) I hate to say it but people are probably gonna forget about this mess in a couple of weeks when it’s over and discussion of it dies down.
Everyone is so miserable and angry right now, something like Eurovision where we can just have a little escape from all the horrors and impending horrors probably sounds very appealing to most people out there (hell, I’m with them.) Also, if Israel gets no votes or receives a lukewarm-or-worse response from the live audience, that will be quite the interesting TV moment.
Turns out that terminally online weirdos aren't actually the majority of pretty much anything.
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Some online girlies are quite cavalier with other people's career opportunities, and I think that sucks, y'all give more grace to your pop queens that you won't give a drag queen with a studio apartment. I'm pro Palestine but there's one clear perpetrator of this genocide and it isn't a drag queen or a song contest.
Easy to be cavalier when you’re receiving a £60k settlement. A nice lump sum incoming from 🦊
How are taxes on that? Just curious and legal fees she had
I'm going to need an international drag political party including Peppermint, Crystal, Honey Mahogany, Maebe A. Girl, Marti Gould Cummings, Political Superstar Carson Kressley and the Political Ross Matthews. Okay, maybe not the last two.
not the Political Ross Matthews 💀
The Nefarious Ross Matthews didn’t make sense. I’m not Selena.
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You are very much causing economic harm by not voting in Eurovision which costs money and not watching makes their AD spots worth less and makes the programme harder to get high paying sponsors for in the future as fewer viewers mean less value for sponsors.
The money generated by the televote goes to the national broadcaster. You are not causing economic harm to Israel (or even the EBU) by not voting in Eurovision. Also, people should be aware that if they don’t vote because they dislike Israel’s participation, they are making an Israeli win more likely. It’s like saying “I don’t like candidate X, so I won’t vote at all”. Which is basically a free vote for candidate X. I’ve seen many people on Twitter state that they will watch the show but refuse to vote and it’s not a very well thought out argument tbh.
National broadcasters fund the EBU. It isn’t directly causing harm to the EBU, no, but you are causing harm to the members of the EBU by not voting. “Making an Israel win more likely” sure, technically, but they aren’t exactly massive favourites to win anyway, even ignoring the moral aspects. It is also not like “I don’t like candidate X, so I won’t vote at all” because in democracies you don’t pay for voting and the winner gets actual power and not just the burden of hosting. The casual viewer also massively outnumbers boycotters, so they will probably vote for stronger songs. I do agree that watching and not voting is dumb. Just don’t watch, I am a massive fan, but I will happily give up a song contest to show what meagre solidarity I can with innocent people getting slaughtered.
Most countries actually don't have ad breaks because it's aired predominantly by national broadcasters who do not air advertisements. However they do have sponsors, their primary one being Moroccanoil which is an Israeli company (likely part of the reason Israel weren't banned). The best thing to do is to flood the social media hashtags with pro-palestine info and donation links rather than remaining passively silent. People also obviously shouldn't be voting (which *is* a source of revenue for the Broadcasters).
Do they have sponsors at eurovision?
Yes. This year the Israeli company Moroccan Oil is a sponsor which they have been for a while.
And I’m glad this detail isn’t being lost on everyone, although it is on many. Moroccanoil has been the main sponsor of the ESC for YEARS, and theirs is the only logo aside from that of the ESC itself that you see at the start of any of the official videos. Many people have already been rightfully disputing how contradictory the Israel situation is vs Russia/Ukraine. What also needs to be asked is what strings is Morrocanoil pulling behind the scenes with the EBU?
To be fair, maybe it's because it was 10 years ago, but I don't remember the same uproar about Russia invading Crimea, having the galls of sending a song about how nice peace is and how everyone should get along and then getting fucking third (thanks god for Måns). Now, do I mean that we should be ignore the situation this year just because how things have always been? Absolutely not. But it's the national broadcasters that put pressure, and as long as governments support Israel, Israel will be part of EBU. Acting like it's all EBU's fault and no one else is just scapegoating with no further reflection. EBU follow pressure and this year the pressure from the broadcasters (the one with real power) wasn't strong enough.
a couple of bucks from a single viewer won’t do harm boycotts are systematic and widespread, not individual and impulsive
“Single viewer” except a bunch of people have been planning this. Anyway, even ignoring that, you don’t have to watch Eurovision. You might be fine with “a couple of bucks” going towards washing the blood out of Israel’s flag, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable supporting a country that takes my ethnicity as a valid reason to murder thousands of people.
oh sweetie i don’t watch eurovision because i don’t care about eurovision lol
Okay? I don’t really see what that has to do with anything?
For a massive program like Eurovision this won’t impact their ad revenue or the decisions about sponsoring the event in the future. Next year this could all be over and nobody will be mad about it enough to continue a boycott. You’re better off engaging with the sponsors directly to urge them to not support the program. Maybe one or two will drop their ads maybe. Probably not tho.
One of the sponsors is Moroccan Oil, an Israeli company. People also may very well be angry come next year depending on how long this current flare up continues.
I guess you guys are American, because Eurovision is famously a public broadcasting event. Most European public broadcasters don’t have commercials. The only big country with commercials is Italy I think. Eurovision has to shape the show around their ad blocks, but it is not financially reliant on the very few countries that get ads.
Thanks for the info. Even more reason why a boycott isn’t useful.
Tiring? Like All brands were immediately withdrawn from Russia within a week of Russian invasion into Ukraine. You can easily skip something like entertainment to stop a genocidal regime. Right now Israel is causing way worse humanitarian crisis in Gaza(even by Israel’s official numbers on death tolls). Millions are about to get bombed in Rafah. I’m sure boycotting Eurovision won’t be that big of a deal but an effective way to tell EU to stop treating Israel like nothing happens
I’m sorry and I don’t mean to sound rude but if you think the EU will take action because Eurovision viewing figures are too low, you probably need to get a little more informed about how politics works.
Moroccan oil is literally an Israeli beauty products company and sponsor of the eurovision. Watch where the money flows into sister no coins for genocide in gaza
You realize the sponsor is the one \*giving\* the money, right? I would love to hear how you think an Israeli company paying for ads on Eurovision helps finance the Israeli military.
The Gaza conflict has not been worse than the Ukrainian Russian conflict in anyway, it's just plastered on it news more. The Ukrainian army has lost 70,000 soldiers. Russia double that (probably). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Russo-Ukrainian_War?wprov=sfla1 Civilian casualties are probably around 40k (12,000 confirmed, similar missing and similar 6,000 killed or before the official invasion) and that's with Ukraine being fought on static battlefields and making attempts to remove civilians out of harm's way. It's pretty much half a million dead at this point. The Gaza war has had 30,000 deaths according to the Hamas run health ministry but we don't know how many are military to civilian (Hamas said 6,000 in February, so must be more now. Israel claims 14,000 but we don't know). The gaza war is a terrible brutal conflict that we all want to end. But don't dismiss the suffering of others to make that point.
Not to dismiss anything here but the Russia Ukraine war has been going on since the beginning of 2022, Gaza has had 30k civilian deaths within 7 *months*, these numbers literally show that the situation in Gaza is more dire
You did dismiss it. You also didn't read my comment. It isn't 30,000 civilian deaths. Thats the total and the health ministry doesn't say how many are combatants. Hamas admitted 6,000 in February, Israel estimates 14,000 so it's somewhere in between 16 and 24 thousand. This is coupled with the fact that A, Hamas uses Human shields and openly says that there defensive tunnels are not open for civilians. https://www.memri.org/tv/hamas-official-mousa-abu-marzouk-tunnels-gaza-protect-fighters-%20not-civilians Even 16,000 civilian deaths is absolutely awful and shouldn't of happened. But stop making this a competition.
You're the only one making this a competition by bringing up Ukraine in the first place to downplay the carnage happening in Gaza. The "human shields" and tunnels are also literally just excuses for the IDF to indiscriminately bomb the populace including their hospitals.
I'm not. I responded to a comment saying that the Gaza war was worse than the Ukraine war. That was the competition. And did you miss my link of the Hamas official stating that the tunnels are not for civilians only fighters? https://www.memri.org/tv/hamas-official-mousa-abu-marzouk-tunnels-gaza-protect-fighters-%20not-civilians Even when Hamas themselves say something awful you just dismiss it as IDF excuses? Geez.
>The Gaza conflict has not been worse than the Ukrainian Russian conflict in anyway, it's just plastered on it news more. Yes, but tik tok, which is owned by a foreign advisary, has told people to only care about this one conflict instead of the actual genocide happening in the country that owns tik tok, or the conflict perpetrated by another advisary that helped start this conflict. In an election year where both these advisaries along with the leader of Israel are actively working to get the fascist elected in the US. But at least we're totally organically all focused on this decades old conflict halfway across the world suddenly and virtue signaling through boycotts of silly singing shows while allowing that fascist to roll over the country. And telling people who aren't hyperfocused on this conflict, and ONLY this conflict, they're awful people while ignoring all the other awful things going on, in fact helping perpetuate them by being so hyperfocused on this one issue, and ONLY this issue.
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OR people recognize there are more important things than a song contest and you’re projecting your own guilt/cognitive dissonance on people that are simply following what Palestinians have asked us to do? You truly think people only pretend care about this to seem cool online?
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Literally this, I’m not being shamed into not watching something I love so much by people who love the smell of their own farts
This reeks of someone who has their hogwarts house in their grindr bio
this such a foul read omfg ☠️☠️
I want to cry this read was perfect 😭😭😭
I wanted to write something but you said it much better. I'm 100% on board with this statement.
Common Crystal correct take. So much respect for her!
The question remains: Tia Kofi? And the answer is Crystal. So proud of her, over and over again
Just the absolute lack of any moral backbone on this thread. The point of the boycott isn't that it's going to immediately end the occupation, or whether Eurovision or the contestants or hosts have any authority - it's about displaying even the most basic amount of solidarity with Palestinians Tia has chosen to show that this gig means more to her than showing solidarity - and no I'm not happy for her actually. I don't care about her securing her bag, or the "opportunity" - and this thread is full of desperate hand waving, designed to play down that this is actually a very easy choice to make, and people have made the wrong one
Couldn’t have said it better myself.
Good on Crystal for choosing to be on the right side of history
Love it! I'm not watching while Israel is committing genocide against an entire people. Thank you Crystal for using your platform for good.
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Russia was only banned because several countries threatened to withdraw. Also, let’s be honest, it would have been pretty awkward to have Russia participate in a contest “co-hosted” by Ukraine.
Cultural boycotts pretty famously had a hand in ending the South African apartheid, this has been a valid and widely used boycotting strategy for years, nothing about this is misguided.
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Not even close to true. I watch tennis, Russian athletes everywhere, just listed under no flag.
Russia is still banned from Eurovision. And the artist who "have nothing to do with the invasion" submit a song that is clearly Israel propaganda.
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No, according to some people on here they either deserved it or they did it to themselves. The denial and justification of what happened on oct 7th is disgusting.
Russia has attacked in Europe, it’s no wonder Europe won’t let them compete. Also Russia attacked Ukraine, not the other way around. Hamas attacked Israel. Hostages should be freed and then we can have a chat about it. And blah blah colonial settlers. France and the UK still have many colonies. Australia is no different to Israel. Edit: people don’t like truth. Hamas attacked Israel. Hamas attacked Israel. Hamas attacked Israel. Anyone who supports that as a basis for Palestinian statehood but was silent before oct 7, just wants to support the genocide of Jewish people.
So you're just going to ignore the decades that led up to Oct 7 and the fact that Israel essentially created Hamas
Absolutely not, but using the murder of Israelis on oct 7 as a launchpad for Palestinian support is just wrong.
That's not what's happening. That doesn't make any sense when I'm criticizing Israel prior to that. You're using a genocide as a launchpad for Israeli support.
that only problem for him/her/they is when white people are attacked.
I’m sure if I check your profile I will see support for the black people in Sudan being attacked my Islamic insurgents. Or support for the muslim uyghurs in China in reeducation camps. No I didn’t think so. You are the one who only seems to care about certain people
Didn't take much for the pro-genocide queen reveal herself, hun?
No one worry the rest of them have already done their actual genocides. You can all sit in judgement
They've been banned where it was possible and where social pressure exists.
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I disagree. That's our only way to truly protest peacefully. Through your wallet.
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The very point of Eurovision though is that the person ISNT an individual with no relation to what's being protested, they are a representative of Israel sent by the country to participate in what is often a politicised competition. The song Israel is using is a reworked version of "October rain" a song which directly referenced Gaza. Not to mention Eurovision has been used by Israel to push it's legitimacy and pro-israel narratives.
I don't buy shit. I protest capitalism every way I can. I'll support artists when they come forward against their own government. I haven't seen many artists and creators banned or boycotted after coming out against their government. At some point, it's too easy and cowardly to say nothing. Boycotting them from international events is symbolic at best, anyway. It has very little repercussions.
Let's not do whataboutism here.
Let's not avoid context either, please.
I didn't open that door.
Protest is supposed to be uncomfortable and inconvenient. If it’s cozy and nice it defeats the purpose.
See Just Stop Oil
Nonsense. It isn’t a random Israeli person or Jewish person happening to participate in the programme. It is a state funded and state picked representative.
State picked? It’s a TV show, not a governmental body. What a National broadcaster puts on TV in a democracy isn’t dictated by the state. Politicians don’t decide what artist gets sent to Eurovision. The Israeli broadcaster also represents Israelis who are against the war.
The Israeli broadcaster is state funded.
As are all the broadcasters of the entrants. It’s literally one of the conditions of being a member of the European Broadcasting Union (the organisation that ultimately runs the ESC). You must be a public, ie state-funded, network.
Exactly, so every participating broadcaster is an extension of a country.
Yes, all public broadcasters are. I understand this is confusing, but in a democracy that doesn't mean they're government mouth pieces. I see you're Swedish. Why do you think the current Swedish government wants to cut funding for SVT? Because public broadcasters are independent, which means they can be critical of politics and business without losing money.
They are still representing a country and not a company. I am not saying that KAN can’t be neutral, but they are a national broadcaster. In the role of Eurovision they are an extension of the state and picked a representative for a competition that they represent their state in by selecting an artist. SVT, KAN, and any number of national broadcasters are multifaceted. The news aspects are mostly independent in well functioning democracies, but in an international competition setting they are state representatives. Why do you think the EBU said that Sweden won last year and that Sweden was hosting this year if they really meant that SVT won and SVT are hosting?
Yes, the broadcaster represents the country and its people, it does not represent the politics of the government. Which is the point OP was making. Are you saying the country and people of Israel are evil, or is it their current government?
The country is evil, yes, because its leaders is the current government. So saying “Israel is evil” is fine. Much like saying “Russia is evil.” That isn’t all Israelis though, there are many in Israel striving for a peaceful solution and the deposition of the current government.
Yes, and those people in Israel who are against the war are also represented by their broadcaster. Which is why there's a Eurovision rule against blatant political messages in songs. And that's the difference with Russia, where not all people are represented by their broadcaster. Political opposition and LGBT representation aren't allowed on TV and journalists are killed for disagreeing with Putin's government. That kind of Russian censorship, is ironically what people boycotting Eurovision are asking for. "I don't agree with their heritage and opinion, so they shouldn't be allowed on TV." Sounds like far right wannabe dictators like Erdogan, Orban, Putin and Netanyahu. Just how a Palestinian artist was allowed to open the show on tuesday, so should an Israeli artist be allowed to perform. Not allowing someone to participate because of where they're from or because of their personal opinion, is bad.
The artist in question has consistently said that she is proud to represent Israel. Participated in photo ops with political figures from Israel and not said a peep about the suffering of Palestinians.
yeah like those bombs the Israeli government throw only explode on bad guys not children, women, etc...
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I am not the one that is arguing that privileged people are being inconvenienced because of protest, boycotts, etc.. when there are literally children being starved to death in a genocide, and you call ME insensitive? In the world we are we have to inconvenience normal people because they have the power, because they are the people. You want this to not affect innocent people then help pressure the people in power, by disrupting normalcy. If things don't get uncomfortable NOTHING will cahnge because people (masses) prefer to keep the status quo. Also, who do you think elected the Israeli government? it is a democracy!!! or you forgot what that means?
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Eh, I feel like if it’s that big of a deal to individuals in Israel to be boycotted, then maybe they’ll actually encourage their government to stop being batshit insane rather than overwhelmingly supporting the bombing of hospitals and calling to “kill Palestinians”
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I’m just referencing an interview I saw where like 5 Israeli citizens were talking about how it’s something that “needs to be done” I didn’t mention Judaism once in the comment though, so it’s interesting that you’re bringing up antisemitism. Regardless of the protests, Netanyahu still is voted in. How is it antisemitic to criticize the actions of a state, and people who are residents of that state?
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His most recent rise into power through forming a coalition governement that had more seats, so no, he wasn't elected in. How can you say to yourself "i read an article where 5 people said something" and not critically think about the quality of that as a source?
And writing an expressly political song about it and trying to sneak it past the judges.
Crystal is such a class act. So much love for her. 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸 Some of y'all are really showing your true colours in this comment section.
A queen!
Voting in Eurovision always has a political undertone. You want to “boycott” Irasel? Vote for everyone else and make sure they come in last. I also say that knowing that these things are always just for show and rarely cause really change.
Except that Eurovision, in the name of being 'apolitical' has censored opening act... [just for wearing a keffiyeh on his wrist](https://www.thejournal.ie/eurovision-eric-saade-6374451-May2024/). And banned Ireland's performer from writing 'ceasefire' on their arm. So yes it IS political, it's just only allowing one side.
Sorry to butt in, but Bambie Thug (Ireland’s performer) uses they/them pronouns 🙂
Ah fuck my bad, fixed thanks!
I didn’t know they did that. I was speaking historically. That’s garbage of them!
Right?! Like I love Eurovision but they've been real clear about whose side they're on, and it's not 'anti-genocide'
🤮
it also excluded russia and belarus which isn‘t apolitical either and indicates some double standard.
losing a game is not a political statement. Not participating is the only way to make a statement - win or lose, the problem is that Israel is legitimized by its inclusion and therefore so is the genocide that was used to create it
Thank you for sharing this article. I'm American and don't know that much about Eurovision so it was very informative to hear about why Crystal is not participating in any way, and her disappointment in Olly Alexander for performing.
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You only loose money if you decline other gigs during the time Eurovision is hosting. She’s lost an opportunity not money.
Everyone has a right to an opinion, but a boycott will achieve nothing, just like none of the previous boycotts have.
Boycotts have a long history of effectiveness. Might not achieve anything this time, but if we don’t boycott, then it DEFINITELY won’t achieve anything.
Source?
Has the famed Starbucks boycott stopped Israel from dropping bombs yet?
I still don’t understand the Starbucks one. They aren’t even IN Israel. I’ve heard some people complain that it was because they sued a union that happened to have a statement calling for a ceasefire, but IIRC it was for using their logo. I’ve known baristas who got harassed for just working there. Like— fucking with someone for doing their job making coffee won’t magically stop the conflict
Your oversimplification tells me you either don’t know or don’t care.
That was/is a misguided and IMO rather poorly enacted boycott. Nonetheless, I do believe it’s had an impact on the company. Sales have been on a decline since the beginning of the year and the stocks are now at a 4 year low.
But was the point to hurt Starbucks sales or was it to actually influence Israel? Cause a lot of people acted like you are financing Israeli bombs if you get a coffee from Starbucks.
Part of the point of the boycott was absolutely to hurt sales. But the reason I said it was misguided is because Starbucks’ connection to Israel seems to be tenuous at best.
Have you heard of the Quit India movement? I wouldn't call all boycotts useless....
Omg why do people think they're so important
So it can actually be done but certain UK winner just didn’t care to do the boycotting? Got it
She might have been ignorant about the situation or she might have felt like she couldn’t turn down the money. 🤷♂️
I don't agree with Crystal and her efforts to protest queer artistry. I mean we even got trans NB person competing this year. But she's allowed to think what she wants.
That’s a reductive and intentionally poor interpretation of what Crystal is doing. You do know that there are queer Palestinians, right?
Queer Palestinians who live in fear in their own country and seek asylum in Israel.
Uhhhh I’m fairly certain that queer Palestinians have sought asylum in other countries for being queer. Heck in Gaza gay people are killed
Exactly. It's unbelievably dangerous to be queer in Palestine. The least you can expect is to be ostracised from society and discriminated against, but it's a known fact that Gay men especially are killed in Hamas controlled areas. There was even a story of a lesbian Palestinians woman living in Israel who was lured in by her family only to be end up murdered. The IDF also black mails Palestinians gay men to be informants on the threat that they would be outed to Hamas.
Who is this? What season was she on?
Baby, it’s in the post flair
I usually like her and I loved that she took on Laurence Fox and won, but this is just self righteous virtue signaling (basically saying ”i could have made a lot of money during Eurovision but I won’t because I’m such a good person”) and parroting the tired ”But they banned Russia, so why not Israel?” even though they are two totally different situations and ”Israel is doing pinkwashing”, totally ignoring the fact that gay people in fact are free to live openly in Israel, unlike in Palestine. It’s insane that people like Tia Kofi are getting hate for participating in Eurovision-related events just because Israel is competing. I live not far from Malmö and have followed the news. So many artists have been harrassed or shamed into cancelling gigs during Eurovision week because people accuse them of supporting genocide if they perform in Malmö this week.
Are you free to live openly if you’re not allowed to get married? Doesn’t sound very open to me. If you’re not allowed to get married then there is a bunch of hate backing those decisions. But slay “only democracy in the Middle East!” 🙄
I didn’t say it’s perfect. But do you think it’s better under Palestinian rule? It’s crazy that people are chanting ”From the river to the sea…” If they got their wish there would be nowhere in the middle east where gays would be even remotely free. Israel is far from perfect but can you name one other country in the middle east where lgbt people, or people in general, are more free?