ByNews Desk- The Cradle
The British-Iraqi rapper has faced numerous censorship attempts by the pro-Israel lobby in the past
Speaking to Middle East Eye, the British-Iraqi rapper Lowkey stated he “will not be silenced on Palestine.”
The lobby group seeks to remove a plethora of music which is critical of the Israeli occupation of Palestine and of Zionist ideology, and which it views as “problematic material.”
“This coordinated campaign is an extension of the brutalization of the Palestinians. Palestinians are routinely arrested by Israel for posts on social media, even children. Dareen Tatour spent almost a year in an occupation jail for posting a poem on Facebook,” Lowkey said in his statement to Middle East Eye.
The pro-Israel lobby group is relying on a controversial working definition of antisemitism authored by International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), which considers any and all criticism of Israel and Zionist ideology as antisemitic.
The IHRA working definition is especially controversial among academics and intellectuals, who believe it constitutes an attempt to silence condemnation of the Israeli occupation of Palestine and differing political viewpoints in general. Many academics have signed open letters against this definition.
Lowkey proclaimed that “artists and musicians should never have to fear threats to their livelihood or person for the music they make. We will not be silenced on Palestine, not now, not ever.”
The lobby group We Believe in Israel was listed as a partner of the Israeli government funded Act.IL platform, a service that runs an online army of social media trolls.
Spotify has come under pressure to remove controversial content. In January 2022, US rock artist Neil Young pressured Spotify to remove the Joe Rogan Experience podcast due to its hosting of various medical experts who disagreed with aspects of World Health Organization guidelines for combating COVID-19.
Critics worry that pressures to silence differing viewpoints can set a dangerous precedent for censorship in the future.
Lowkey has been subjected to censorship attempts in the past.
Most recently, an Israeli lobby group unsuccessfully sought to cancel his appearance at Cambridge University earlier this year. However, one Israeli lobby group was successful in removing him from a National Union of Students (NUS) conference.
British MP Andrew Percy slammed the NUS for inviting a rapper who engages in “antisemitic conspiracy theories.”
On 12 December 2010, Lowkey was arrested and his home was raided by British authorities in what was considered an arbitrary political targeting due to the thematic content of his music.
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