Yesterday writer Alice Walker got at Alicia Keys in an Open Letter asking her not to do a concert in Israel as a way to protest their Apartheid-like policies toward Palestinians… Well Alicia Keys is being stepped to again.. This time by Pink Floyd‘s Roger Waters.. In his letter he notes that he along with Bishop Desmond Tutu wrote to Stevie Wonder about playing for Israel’s army and that he complied.. He says she hopes she’ll join others to stand united against oppression.. Here’s the letter below which appeared at PACBI.
Roger Waters
Dear Alicia Keys
I read today Alice Walker’s eloquent and moving entreaty to you in her open letter.
It is hard to add anything except to implore you to follow all the links she has directed you to.
To introduce myself to you, I am a fellow musician, my name is Roger Waters, I used to be in a band called Pink Floyd, and, believe it or not, I still work.
I had reason last December to write a letter to Stevie Wonder to encourage him to withdraw from an engagement in LA. It was a Gala to raise funds for the Israeli Defense Force. I wasn’t the only one to write, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the great advocate of peace and reconciliation, was among many, many others who wrote as well. To Stevie’s great credit he withdrew.
We are all part of the same old story, nothing has changed since the bad old days of apartheid South Africa and Segregated America. We must stand united with all our brothers and sisters against racism, colonialism, segregation and apartheid.
Please, Alicia, do not lend your name to give legitimacy to the Israeli government policies of illegal, apartheid, occupation of the homelands of the indigenous people of Palestine.
Others may try to persuade you that by playing in Israel you may magically effect some change; we know that this is not true, appeasement didn’t work with South Africa and it has not worked in Israel. I know I tried it ten years ago, things have only got worse.
I appeal to you to join the rising tide of resistance. Join the many millions of us in global civil society who stand together on the side of justice and peace for all humanity. “We shall overcome one day.”
With love and respect,
Roger Waters
o wow did he really lol
Very interesting (RED)
they on her line
Wow. How depressingly ignorant of him. Too bad I won’t be listening to any Pink Floyd in the future. I like them.
So Alice Walker and Roger Waters support BIGOTRY, HATE and DISCRIMINATION against the people of Israel, and against random everyday music fans of Israel, because they don’t like the way the government protects itself from the crazy lunatic jihad terrorist groups that surround Israel and rant crazed garbage every day about how much they want to destroy the place.
That’s really disgusting of Alice Walker and Roger Waters.
And to use the word “apartheid” in Israel’s direction just shows PATHETIC IGNORANCE. Israel has ONE MILLION Arab citizens and they are educated, doctors, lawyers, computer programmers, etc. making a full living and living a free life. Know who is NOT making any money or living a free life? Arabs in the ACTUAL ARAB COUNTRIES near Israel. In Syria, Arabs are DYING right now, while in Israel Arabs are watching cable TV and chillin at cafes or whatever. In Egypt half the people can’t even read. In Yemen, Arabs are literally starving. In Israel, there are Arab JUDGES, Arab government members, etc.
Israel has a million Muslim citizens. Know how many Jewish citizens Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, etc. have? CLOSE TO ZERO, because those countries destroyed their Jewish populations.
So Israel, the MOST LIBERAL AND DIVERSE country in that region, the only one with a MASSIVE minority populations, and one whose minorities are the most free, educated and successful minorities in that entire region of the planet, is the one country with the dishonest hate hurled at it the most. GO FIGURE.
If Roger Waters and Alice Walker actually cared about peace, they’d go tell Hamas, Islamic Jihad, etc. to stop trying to blow Israel up and agree to peace with Israel. But instead, they promote RACISM and BIGOTRY against Israeli MUSIC FANS! As if that’s going to bring peace! They are HATEMONGERS.
Israel has ONE MILLION Arab citizens that are living 50 times better than most Arabs in actual Arab countries.
Yet IGNORANT FOOLS keep ranting about “apartheid.”
Meanwhile, Syria has killed 80,000 Arabs in the last 1.5 years. That’s more than Israel has killed EVER, in 65 years COMBINED.
Man, some dumb people have loud voices.
Wow (RED)
One last thing from me: The idea that performing a concert in Tel Aviv is controversial is a damn JOKE. Any fools even been to Tel Aviv? It’s the closest thing to NEW YORK CITY in that entire region of the earth. There are white Jews, dark-skinned Jews, Arab Muslims, Arab Christians, black people from about 50 different places, and a zillion other people, all working together, hanging out, drinking a damn cappuccino, partying, etc.
And scumbags want to promote BIGOTRY and DISCRIMINATION against Israelis? That’s going to bring peace?
HAMAS, ISLAMIC JIHAD, etc. are the damn problem.
How come China occupies Tibet, yet it’s OK to go perform concerts in China?
How come Muslim countries discriminate against non-Muslims, but it’s OK to perform there?
How come Syria has killed 80,000 Arabs in the past 1.5 years yet none of these fools who pretend to care about “justice” are even talking about it? (ANSWER: BECAUSE THEY CAN’T BLAME JEWS, SO SUDDENLY THEIR BITCH ASSES ARE QUIET ABOUT IT).
How come Palestinians can support brutal Arab dictators that openly discriminate against black people, yet some black people still want to stick up for them in their quest to try to harm Israel?
Jews and Arabs do live separately in the West Bank, but that’s so JEWS DON’T DIE. Jews got killed out of Egypt, killed out of Jordan, killed out of Lebanon, killed out of Syria, so in the West Bank they live separately so they don’t DIE. Thta’s not “APARTHEID,” that’s called SURVIVAL. And in main Israel, they all live together, and live 50 better than poor starving Arabs in actual Arab countries right now.
Again, man, some DUMB PEOPLE have loud voices to preach DUMB SHIT to people DUMB enough to listen.
You go to Tel Aviv, you’ll feel like you’re in a nicer NYC, except with a beach!
You go to Syria, you’ll get blown the hell up by insane terrorists or the insane government.
Reality Check is a Shin Bet troll. Please ignore his paid ignorance.
Reality Check needs to get comfortably numb.
We need more Jewish celebrities to speak out against Israel’s policies. I know for a fact some disagree with them, and they are no small names. But they don’t dare go public with their views, out of fear of it would affect their career. Which brings me to my next point. We need a studio head or two to come out against Israel’s policy as well. What is the connection between Hollywood’s power class and Israel? That’s worth scrutinizing.
HEY TEACHER…LEAVE THOSE KIDS ALONE !!!
very cool
Mr. Goldman and Reality Check, we have a problem.
Nice (RED)
cool
bravo
i believe it’s awesome he wrote that letter, and i see no discrimination at all in this
, there is a big big difference of having a concert to support anything in israel than having a concert to fund raise for the army , as palastenians have no army so mostly civils have been bombed (remember walters wrote the war pigs )
anyway it was so funny that dude up there who said he will not listen to pink floyd again …… yes buddy it’s their loss :))
Where is some unbiased information about this issue? I would like to educate myself fully before picking a side. . .
@ TrapHouse TV, information is already here….
smh
dang @ bmuhamad lol
Come on, the basis of the story has been set up. The background information is set forth in the beginning of the article. There is a couple people who don’t like the slant of the story. What more do you need. Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys, Roger Waters, and the late Gil Scott-Heron?….
Roger Waters and company, which have offered support for anti-semitic and genocidal organizations like Hamas and Hizbollah, should stick to music instead of ignorantly spewing this kind of bile, especially when it is done to try influence others to their warped way or thinking. I’d love to debate Waters, Walker or any of these hypocrites who wouldn’t dream of boycotting the USA, which has designated both Hamas and Hizbollah as terrorist organizations.
Shame on you Waters, Walker and your attempts to sway others with such negative peer pressure and bullying tactics.
Your reasons are Mr. Race? I am curious for your opinion….