Would they do this to a Chinese DJ?

The Free Speech Union released:

Twisted Frequency, a New Year music festival in Golden Bay, has cancelled Israeli DJ Dekel because he has not spoken out against Israel.

The festival says it was told Dekel had been a commander in the Israeli Defence Force and had performed in Israel in recent years. When it heard this, it contacted his management to cancel the booking.

It says it also tried to find evidence about his views, and found nothing “verified and substantial” about his personal beliefs. It went ahead with cancelling him anyway, saying “the fact he hasn’t spoken out against the genocide in Palestine and has continued to perform in Israel is all that is needed”.

The festival says a country of origin alone isn’t a reason to boycott a musician. But without a public statement from Dekel against the “ongoing occupation and genocide”, it would not host him.

The Festival of course has the right to invite or disinvite people, but let’s not pretend this isn’t about the country of origin.

There is a simple comparison one can do. The Government of China has also been accused of committing crimes against Muslims, in this case Uyghurs. Some have also labelled that a genocide.

Has any music or literary festival ever ever gone and told a Chinese artist that they are banned from performing unless they issue a public statement against the treatment of Muslim Uyghurs by the Chinese Government?

Of course not.

Which is how we can safely conclude it is not about what is happening to a group of Muslims. It is about being Jewish or Israeli.