Elvis Costello Israel

I was watching the news on Memorial Day. It was night time or sometime in the afternoon, I don’t quite recall. I was tired from the Memorial Day activities, and I was zoning out. I woke up pretty quick when news broke about the Israeli Military’s raid on a flotilla carrying activists and aid to Gaza. The video looked like something out of a movie, Israeli helicopters flew over the ship, and paratroopers descended and all hell broke loose. In the end, nine activists were dead. Israel said that the siege was justified and necessary, that the boat was not just carrying human rights activists looking to bring much needed aid, but was disguising weapons as well as those wishing to bring Israel harm. My first thought after being awakened from my slight slumber was , ‘f**k, not again!’

For those that don’t know me personally, or know much about me, I was born and raised in Chicago, IL. I am 28 years old. And I am Jewish. It’s the last piece of my identity that is perhaps the most complex, as well as loosely defined. I actually tried to figure it out, really figure it out, and dedicated my senior year of college to a thesis about Jewish Identity entitled from Moses to Sandy Koufax: How Religion and Culture Intersect To Form Jewish Identity Amongst College Students. It was a long title, and a great experience, but I digress. My Jewish identity is more confusing to me when Israel gets involved. I think it was a few years ago when I told someone that it feels kind of like when you play on a team and disagree with your coach, but when it comes down to it, he is still your coach and it is still your team… Well, it gets harder to keep believing that every time Israel does something like this. It gets harder to justify Israel’s actions, and some of what they do appears to be in great conflict with the ideals and beliefs that led to Israel’s formation. But, this post is not meant to be my take on Israeli politics and statehood, or about my own feelings about Israel, which are complex and at times contradictory. It is about moves by some in the music world to cancel their scheduled concerts because they don’t want to be affiliated with Israel’s actions.

Elvis Costello is one such artist who pulled out of concert dates. He joins The Pixies and The Gorillaz, who also withdrew. Costello released a statement on his website entitled “It Is After Considerable Contemplation” in which he said,

“It is after considerable contemplation that I have lately arrived at the decision that I must withdraw from the two performances scheduled in Israel on the 30th of June and the 1st of July. One lives in hope that music is more than mere noise, filling up idle time, whether intending to elate or lament. Then there are occasions when merely having your name added to a concert schedule may be interpreted as a political act that resonates more than anything that might be sung and it may be assumed that one has no mind for the suffering of the innocent. I must believe that the audience for the coming concerts would have contained many people who question the policies of their government on settlement and deplore conditions that visit intimidation, humiliation or much worse on Palestinian civilians in the name of national security. I am also keenly aware of the sensitivity of these themes in the wake of so many despicable acts of violence perpetrated in the name of liberation. Some will regard all of this an unknowable without personal experience but if these subjects are actually too grave and complex to be addressed in a concert, then it is also quite impossible to simply look the other way. I offer my sincere apologies for any disappointment to the advance ticket holders as well as to the organizers. My thanks also go to the members of the Israeli media with whom I had most rewarding and illuminating conversations. They may regard these exchanges as a waste of their time but they were of great value and help to me in gaining an appreciation of the cultural scene. I hope it is possible to understand that I am not taking this decision lightly or so I may stand beneath any banner, nor is it one in which I imagine myself to possess any unique or eternal truth. It is a matter of instinct and conscience. It has been necessary to dial out the falsehoods of propaganda, the double game and hysterical language of politics, the vanity and self-righteousness of public communiqués from cranks in order to eventually sift through my own conflicted thoughts. I have come to the following conclusions. One must at least consider any rational argument that comes before the appeal of more desperate means. Sometimes a silence in music is better than adding to the static and so an end to it. I cannot imagine receiving another invitation to perform in Israel, which is a matter of regret but I can imagine a better time when I would not be writing this. With the hope for peace and understanding.”

I wonder if any Jewish artists will speak out on Israel. Maybe Bob Dylan, who toured with Elvis Costello and converted briefly to Christianity before coming back to our side. Maybe we’ll see a statement from Mike D, Adrock, or MCA all three of who are American Jews with a high profile. Then there is Lyor Cohen, a champion of rappers as the tough Israeli, the down ass Jew. MC Serch has spoken previously on the topic of peace and understanding, perhaps it will be him… Peter Rosenberg? Drake?

I’d like to think they all have opinions, but as I mentioned above, also believe that they may share my own confusion of how to handle it. Maybe they struggle with how to speak ill about a family member’s actions while still keep them in the family. Or maybe they don’t. But I do wish they would say something.