1<\/p>\n
This is a rights issue, not one of censorship.<\/p>\n
The Geto Boys had a deal with Geffen Records, but once David Geffen became aware of the content of the act’s debut, which contained graphic, violent and sexually explicit lyrics, he decided not to put out the album and released the Geto Boys from their contract with the label. A matter of free speech? No, a matter of rights. Geffen didn’t say the Geto Boys couldn’t make music, couldn’t have it distributed, that it couldn’t be available in retail stores, he just didn’t want the music to come out on his label!<\/p>\n
And Robert Kraft and his compatriots didn’t want Macklemore to perform in the stadiums they own\/control. They did not say Macklemore couldn’t perform at all, couldn’t say what he wanted to, just that he was not going to be given a platform in their buildings.<\/p>\n
So no censorship is involved.<\/p>\n
As for the underlying issue of Judaism\/Palestinian rights…<\/p>\n
There’s history here. I point you to this article:<\/p>\n
“Macklemore apologises for ‘Jewish caricature’ costume”:<\/p>\n
https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/newsbeat-27483970<\/p>\n
This was 2014. You may not remember, but I certainly do. I saw these pictures of Macklemore with a prosthetic hooked nose and fake beard and immediately saw a classic antisemitic trope, it’s over twelve years later and it’s still lodged in my brain, it’s the first thing I thought of when I heard about Macklemore’s performance at MetLife stadium. If you’re not Jewish, you may not recall, but if you are Jewish, you can never forget.<\/p>\n
Antisemitism… It’s kind of like racism, if you’re white and Christian you may have never experienced it, but if you’re the party being attacked…<\/p>\n
As for Jews… The stories are true, people ask us where our horns are. We killed Jesus, we are the enemy. Many people have never even encountered a Jew, but they have negative feelings about Jewish people.<\/p>\n
Now I’ve got to ask you… If a performer stood up on stage at MetLife and spewed anti-Charlie Kirk hate, do you think everybody would have shrugged and moved on? No, all hell would have broken loose.<\/p>\n
You see there’s a double standard here. Jews are an acceptable target, others no. If Jews kill a civilian in war it’s over the line, if non-Jews do this, people shrug.<\/p>\n
So what did Macklemore actually do? He said much more than “Free Palestine.”<\/p>\n
As for the lack of a huge negative reaction to his previously released song “Hind’s Hall,” which he performed on stage, it is anything but a hit, with not even a hundred thousand streams on Spotify, and that might sound like a lot, but that’s bupkes in reality. “Bupkes” or “bupkis,” there are alternative English spellings of this Yiddish word. But chutzpah, schlep, schmooze…these words are part of the regular English lexicon these days. Anyway, in a world where it’s hard to gain attention, who has even thought of Macklemore recently, the fact that everybody was not aware of this song is not a defense.<\/p>\n
But it was more than “Free Palestine.” Macklemore praised the Columbia University protesters who occupied Hamilton Hall in 2024. This act and the lack of protection of Jewish Columbia students led to the president of the insitution losing their job. Do you remember those antisemitism hearings in Washington, D.C? Maybe not, but the issue was twofold…did Jewish students feel safe and would the demonstrations be allowed if in reverse? In other words, was there a double standard.<\/p>\n
As for the images on screen at MetLife, let’s just say they depicted one side and not the other.<\/p>\n
You can read the background\/Macklemore’s history here:<\/p>\n