MACKLEMORE UNLEASHES PRO-PALESTIAN PROTEST ANTHEM
"HIND'S HALL" ROCKETS ACROSSS THE INTERNET, ISRAELI SINGER EDEN GOLAN BOOED DURING REHEARSAL FOR EUROVISION SONG CONTEST SEMI-FINAL.
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The Israeli entry in this year's Eurovision Song Contest 2024 was booed during dress rehearsal for semi-finals in Sweden on Wednesday, while American rapper Macklemore's pro-Palestinian anthem continued to rocket across the Internet.
"Hind's Hall" by Macklemore celebrates the student-led occupation of Hamilton Hall at Columbia University to protest the U.S. bankrolling bombs to Israel to kill Palestinians, while Eden Golan's song, "Hurricane," is about Palestinian militia's lethal cross-border raid into Israel from the Gaza Strip Oct. 7.
The protesters who occupied Hamilton Hall renamed it Hind's Hall to honor a Palestinian girl killed by Israel's military with what was likely an American-made bomb in Gaza during Israel's ongoing war against Palestinian militants.
"The problem isn't the protests, it's what they're protesting," the 40-year-old Seatle-native raps. “It goes against what our country is funding. Block the barricade until Palestine is free!"
The video accompanying the two minute and forty-eight second song features news footage from the NYPD raid on Hamilton Hall, pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses across America and graphic images of dead civilians, including children, killed by Israel.
The video had 28 million views on X, formerly Twitter, alone as of Wednesday evening.
Across the US, pro-Palestinian protesters have been occupying campus quads and, in some places, buildings. The students demand their schools divest from Israel. School administrators and public officials have responded with police. More than 2,300 people have been arrested at schools across the country.
Many of those arrested at university protests were students, some of whom have been expelled.
Some of these campus demonstrations have inspired counterprotests in support of Israel. In New York City on Wednesday, a Zionist militant ran over a pro-Palestinian protester. The perp was Reuven Kahane, 57, cousin of none other than Rabbi Meir Kahane, founder of the Jewish Defense League and an armed Zionist militia.
El Sayyid Nosair assassinated Rabbi Kahane outside a Zionist conference at the mid-town Marriot in 1990
"Hind's Hall" is a musical indictment. Macklore takes aim at not just Israel. He targets America and the unconditional military support it gives Israel. Censorship of social media. The silence of the music industry. Pro-Israeli political lobbying groups like AIPAC. Large corporations including Starbucks and McDonalds. Pro-Israel propaganda.
"We see the lies in them," Macklemore says in "Hind's Hall," "claiming its anti-Semetic to be anti-Zionist."
But, he says, "I've seen Jewish brothers and sisters out there riding in solidarity and screaming 'Free Palestine!' with em."
He also blasted unleashing police on non-violent protesters.
Police ran motorcycles into peaceful protesters and arrested 43 at the University of Texas flagship campus at Austin. At Emory in Atlanta, police shot peaceful protesters with pepperball guns and arrested 17. New York City Mayor Eric Adams unleashed the NYPD's SWAT team on the protesters occupying Hamilton Hall, arresting 46 inside.
In the process, the NYPD detonated a flash-bang grenade and one tactical officer negligently fired a shot from his handgun.
Macklemore the artist adopts the world-view of the protesters.
He accuses Israel of “white supremacy," “apartheid” and "an occupying violent history." He says its war against Palestinian militia in Gaza is “genocide." He says "the Nakba never ended. The colonizer lied."
Some of his harshest criticism is aimed at Pres. Joe Biden who, to date, has given Israel all the bombs and political cover it needs to kill all the Palestinians it wants to. To date, Israel has killed more than 35,000 and wounded more than 78,000 since Oct. 7. Only about 15,000 were combatants. Most were women, children and old men.
"The blood is on your hands Biden, we can see it all," he charges. "And Fuck No! I'm not voting for you in the Fall."
Macklemore is perhaps best known for his 2012 hit “Thrift Shop.”
The popular video depicted a thrift store shopping spree. He's spoken out against former Pres. Donald J. Trump and in support of Black Lives Matters protests.
His real name is Benjamin Haggerty. He graduated from Evergreen State College in 2009. Evergreen has a long history of activism. Instead of summoning police on protesters at its Washington state campus, it negotiated and pledged to seriously consider divesting from Israel.
For showing up on stage in a wig, fake beard and hooked nose in 2014, he was accused of anti-Semitism.
He replied: "unfortunately at the time I did not foresee the costume to be viewed in such regard. I truly apologize to anybody that I may have offended.”
Any royalties he earns from the song will be donated to the United Nations, he said on social media.
Meanwhile in Sweden, the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 semi-final is scheduled for Thursday night.
Eden Golan, 20, is representing Israel with her song, released in March, "Hurricane." The song was originally titled "October Rain" and explicitly supported Israel's invasion of the Gaza Strip. In response to criticism by contest officials, it was re-written.
At a dress rehearsal Wednesday night, she was booed by the crowd. Other audience members left the hall.
"Free Palestine!," one man repeatedly shouted at the stage.
Ziv Nevo-Kulman, Israel's ambassador to Sweden, told Israeli TV program "This Morning" that "What we see in the streets is a very, very explosive combination of the most extreme elements."
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