It wasn't enough for Macy Gray to agree to perform in Israel. She has to take a virtual loyalty oath, too.
The Israeli media is filled with reports about Macy Gray confirming her plans to perform in Tel Aviv in March. This should have been an occasion for Israelis to celebrate their continuing ability to behave as a normal society despite occupying millions of people, holding Gaza under siege, maintaining an apparatus of racism against its non-Jewish citizens. But in a poorly calculated stunt designed to wash her hands of human rights concerns, Gray had first asked her “fans” if she should perform despite what she called Israel’s “disgusting” treatment of the Palestinians. Within hours, thousands of people who had no prior interest in Gray or her music flocked to her Facebook page (they only had to “like” her page in order to post) to register their opinions. Gray, who appeared to have every intention of performing anyway, remarked after announcing her plan to go to Tel Aviv, that some of those urging her to boycott were “assholes.”
Under normal circumstances, Gray’s roundhouse attack on some supporters of BDS and her subsequent pledge to perform in Tel Aviv should have pleased nationalistic Israelis. However, her initial criticism of Israel’s occupation has invited a firestorm of racist, sexist and generally hateful diatribes from Israelis. Indeed, many Israelis are more furious with Gray for performing inside their country than for refusing to come. Several internet forums, including one called “Don’t Betray,” have sprouted up to incite public anger at artists such as Gray who have criticized Israel — even if they agree to perform in the country. Meanwhile, the talkback sections of articles in the Hebrew media about Gray’s Tel Aviv shows have provided a forum for the most extreme screeds about the singer.
I have collected and translated a sampling of talkbacks from an article in the Hebrew edition of Ynet, the online version of the Israeli paper Yedioth Aharonoth, which highlight the attitude of some Israelis towards Gray. The talkbacks are almost entirely negative towards Gray, with many urging her to cancel her show for daring to criticize Israel, while others call her a “nigger” and denigrate black music as “contaminated.” Gray might be vaguely aware of Israel’s systematic abuse of Palestinians, but is she aware of the racism towards black Africans inside Israel, including Ethiopian Jews? Has she considered how she might be treated if she were living in Israel? And who are the “assholes” anyway?
Some of 500+ comments from the talkback section to the Hebrew Ynet article provocatively entitled “Gray is against Israel but not canceling:”
THe ugly niggers are joining the Darfurians entering here. All of you go away. wedontwantyou
Go find whoever is going to shag you you fucking whore. Every piece of garbage opens their cunt on us. muslimit
David from Safed: She should take all her brothers the Sudanese and Eritreans and fuck off here.
Another “afro american.” Nice name that the niggers made for themselves. Max
Black music is inferior music that fits you. No name [Another commenter calls him a racist.] “No name” replies: What is racist about that? To say “black” is racist?
Who wants you? You look like a monkey. Mikhal
It’s really disgusting that Israel is going to see black!!! music. Disgusting. Contaminates your soul. Ayela
Don’t come we don’t need your ugly fat ass here. Dude
Blacks and Muslims always go together. Brainless fraternity of people. Shai
[Responding to other commenters denying that any occupation exists]: Right, what chutzpah of us to survive in the jungle around us, as if she can’t understand the jungle. M
They [Americans] killed thousands of innocent people in Iraq but they come to complain here. moshe
What Israeli fans does she have here? Leftist garbage maniacs [bastards] need to be killed whoever comes to her show. victor
What Palestinian people? What peaceful people? Maybe terrorism? Maybe right of return on your expense? Bruriera Hess
Don’t give us favors. IF she’s contemplating coming Israel should cancel the show. Dontgiveusfavors
I returned the ticket. And you? Anee
Maybe they will let her perform in Gaza. Raymond
Go to Gaza, perform and fuck for the Hamas. May your name be cursed. pessey
When you’re being spit at at least you have to get a kleenex to clean it up. hamitnaseh
Fuck you who wants you here anyway? Sharon
[Quote by David Ben Gurion]: “It doesn’t matter what the goyim will say it matters what the Jews will do.” LT
Sweetheart, don’t come here. We don’t want you. Who do you think you are talking about us? IsraeliJewishFighter
Those who are “disgusting” towards the Balestinians [mocking the Arabic pronounciation of Palestinian] are the Balestinians themselves. Hineh
Please don’t cancel. What are we going to do without your show? My Asshole
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Joseph Dana, Sasa, Drago Dimitrijevic, auntieeminaz, Hotel Terminus and others. Hotel Terminus said: RT @MaxBlumenthal: Israelis target Macy Gray with racist diatribes AFTER she agrees to play Tel Aviv. http://bit.ly/ifsopE #bds #macygra … [...]
Im sure you’re going to do an expose on the thousands of anti-semitic comments that your youtube video brings out including “mblumenthal is a brave jew who uncovers the lies of his fellow jews and shows why the world hates jews! Jews are the real nazis!”
Can you please do a blog post on how many stormfront threads your vdeos inspired (quite a few)
She got what she deserves. With regards to the insults she received, I’d say Not bad, for starters. I hope there will be more for her; including a cavity search at BGAP, and a Baghdad-Style, George Bush junior Salute, while performing!.
@E
That’s ironic. Max did an expose on racist, nationalistic Zionist Jews on vacation in Israel. And you’re crying about the comments in the YT page?
Racists were being racists. Then other racists will look at them and be as racist (conflating the original racists – who are Jewish – with all Jews).
You’re comparing apples and oranges.
In this instance, the same kind of nationalistic, racist Jews are spewing hate. The difference is that they’re the ones in the comment section as opposed to the whatever.
RE: “Israelis target Macy Gray with racist diatribes…” – Max Blumenthal
FROM ‘YNET News’, 01/19/11:
ENTIRE ARTICLE – http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4015645,00.html
Cliff,
First of all, videotaping a handful of drunken nonsensical 17 year olds into a 4 minute video is not an “expose.” Second of all, Max is highlighting “talkback” comments to make the point that….there are racist people in Israel that are commenting on internet forums?? Its equivalent to me collecting anti-semitic comments off blumenthal’s youtube videos saying “Blumenthal video fans target Jews, call them nazis.” Funny, when Lee Smith of Tablet said anti-semitism was becoming respectable on the internet and used the hundred of anti-semitic comments on blog posts and youtube videos as proof, Max ridiculed Smith saying that in order to find anti-semitism he had to “highlight a few screeds by semi-literate and mostly anonymous comment trolls.” Thats exactly what Max is doing here. Pot, meet kettle.
Actually E, you come dangerously close to answering your own question (Not to mention asking it). The antisemitic filth on the internet aren’t conscripted into an army that regularly shoots civilians. The asshats from that YNET talkback are. In any case, the point of Feeling the Hate in Jerusalem was to show us the monsters we create by supporting Israel. If these kids aren’t all about living vicariously, their racist power trip will be killing real people.
no andrew,
the point of max’s vid was quite clear.
he attempted to present the views of drunken american college students as those of the typical israeli
he is again attempting to present the comments of a few out of 500, as being the comments of the whole
problem is, max neither reads, writes or speaks hebrew….so did he use google translate?
i would suggest going to macy’s facebook, where the majority of israeli’s who have posted, support her.
just another attempt by the king of the blood libels to bring scorn, derision and hate against israel and the jewish people
shame on max
“he attempted to present the views of drunken american college students as those of the typical israeli”
I love how every comment poohing that video has to point out they were drunk as if they’d be so much better sober. And you are about the last person to convince anyone Israelis aren’t typically like that.
If Lee Smith’s story stuck to the assertion that many antisemitic comments were posted on the internet, few of the blog owners would have complained. But almost his entire story directly attacked blog owners for being “Jew-baiters” simply because antisemitic comments could be found in the comment section. That is a totally different argument.
Regarding Macy Gray, Max wasn’t using internet comments to show that racism exists in Israel. That would in deed have been somewhat problematic.
Instead, he was highlighting the internet version of something we already know exists in Israel, since their policies and polls prove it. For example, the poll done by the Israel Democracy Institute in November 2010 showed that the majority of Israelis want Arabs to leave, almost half won’t want to live near Arabs, 40% don’t want to live near foreign workers, the majority wants more money spent on Jewish munisipalities than others, etc.
Max’s article simply illustrates how all this manifests in Macy Gray’s specific case and wonders why she didn’t call SOME of the Israelis assholes as well while she was prepared to apply that lable to SOME of the boycotters. (Frankly, I thought there were some valuable and some nasty comments on both sides.)
No Leigh, Max was clearly attempting to connect “a few screeds by semi-literate and mostly anonymous comment trolls” to what he describes as widespread racism against blacks in Israel including ethiopian jews, a situation he knows nothing about considering the radical left clique he hangs out with in israel is almost entirely white and ashkenazic and certainly has no ethiopuan jews who tend to be religious nor any of the other brown jews he claims to care about but in reality knows nothing about and actually ridicules in some of his videoso. He thinks Druze israelus arr actually jewish and mistakenly said that mizrachi israelis were “levantine” despite the fact that the vast majority came to israel from places outside of the levant. Its blumenthal that actually had the racist attitude by treating israels brown druze and mizraci and ethiopian jews as just another oppressed downtrodden generic middle eastern group instead of truly understanding their history and opinions which would conflict with his racist self image as the great white hope fighting for anonymous brown masses. How else to explain the connection of ethiopian jews to palestinians? Truly ridiculous. In any case, if mac really wanted to do a story on racism against blacks on the middle east he should go to egypt where black africans are treated on par with dogs. There’s a reason why they risk their lives to run from egypt to Israel.
Dear all, Walt Kovacs and his wingman/woman E are both Zionist trolls. They continue to do the same thing: if you can’t defend the acts of the Israelis reported in a blog post (which is becoming more and more difficult to do) just attack the blogger while dismissing the acts reported as those of a few. So lately they just either link to a “friend” of Max’s or they start talking about an old video or blog post and then begin their twisted reasoning about how the other side is equally racist, evil and ignorant.
E, how about you post some links to the claims you made of Max’s “ignorance”? The last time Kovacs pulled a similar move it turned out he has serious comprehension problems: http://maxblumenthal.com/2011/01/my-day-in-the-courtroom-of-judge-john-roll-who-lived-and-died-in-arizonas-climate-of-hate/
E clearly suffers from the same symptoms.
Also, how exactly do you know who he hangs out with? You work for the Mossad or something? Is that where you get paid for trolling?
Oh, and it’s interesting how you two pick and choose which of Max’s (and his friends’) works to highlight. I’m guessing that Max’s brave video on crazy Holocaust deniers doesn’t really fit in with your narrative –or his friend, Phil Weiss’s, constant bashing of anti-Semites.
If anyone is doing any damage to the image of the Jews it’s the Zionists. What they share with anti-Semites is their equation of “Zionist” with “Jewish”. The day Zionists stop committing crimes in the name of *all* Jews then anti-Semites will have a hard time using their acts to support their racist twisted claim that Jews are essentially evil. And, for the crimes to stop, Zionism should continue to be exposed for what it really is.
[...] I’m going to suggest that this is something that’s worth paying attention to. More than pop stars and what happens to them on Facebook. It doesn’t matter nearly as much who decides to go to Israel as it does who Israel [...]
talk of irony
in commenting on racism, rose uses the oldest racist canard in the book….that it is the victim’s behavior that is the cause of the racism
why am i not surprised
of course, it does say in the torah, aisav soneh yaakov …yet no cause is given…its genetic
however, the sinah against the jewish people is allowed to fester when the people do not keep the law
therefore, i would suggest it is not the :”zionists” who are the root cause of jew hate…but people like max and philly boy…who spit on the law and the torah
oh…and one interview with a holocaust denying wackjob does not constitute a myriad of videos
and please provide links to philly boy;s work against jew hate and jew haters…find it hard to believe, as he is usually at the forefront…leading the charge against fellow jews….oops..check that…philly burned his jew card years ago
and to andrew…a better human being then the rest of the world
guess you have never been drunk….never said something drunk that you wouldnt have, were you sober
you are therefore a friggin saint…and have every right to call drunk american college students….monsters
you insipid little twit
[...] with racist diatribes AFTER she agrees to play Tel Aviv (and who are the “assholes?”)By Max BlumentalThe Israeli media is filled with reports about Macy Gray confirming her plans to perform in Tel Aviv [...]
Wackjob Walt,
When were Zionists ever victims?!!! Oh wait, you are one of them so you think it’s your birth right to kill people and steal their land in the name of a twisted interpretation of a holy book.
Zionists like you do and say everything in the name of ALL Jews and then go around complaining when their crimes are exposed that exposing these crimes will increase antisemitism. Of course there are anti-Semites out there who are more than happy to use these crimes as proof of inherent evil in Jews (and the Zionists make their job easy for them). Me saying that is not blaming the victim, unless you still insist that Zionist=Jew. I’m blaming the culprit, THE ZIONIST, while not at all Justifying the acts of anti-Semites who, like Islamophobes, homophobes and all other racists (especially ethno-supremacists like Zionists), will continue to do all they can to smear whole groups of people and get what they want.
One way to stop racists from wining more people on their side is to make the distinction clear: Not all Jews are Zionists just as not all Muslims are al-Qa’ida.
Of course Zionists like you don’t want to make that distinction because once it’s made you and your kind won’t be able to label any criticism of Zionism and Israel as antisemitic. Zionists and anti-Semites have a lot to gain from blurring that distinction.
And if anyone is blaming the victim here it’s hasbara agents like you who for years now have been blaming the Palestinians for every single crime the Zionists, especially the settlers, have done against them. Just go back and read your comments on every single post in this blog. You are amazing at finding excuses for the criminals and blaming the victim.
Hell, you just found an excuse for racist drunks. No “Mr. Walter Kovacs from the Watchmen” not everyone who gets drunk spits out racist slurs. To say stuff like that when drunk you have to have been thinking it when sober and not everyone is a racist like you.
Given how much you hate this and similar blogs and after what happened in the comments section here (http://maxblumenthal.com/2011/01/on-the-origins-of-palins-blood-libel-gaffe/#comments) I’m surprised you are showing your ugly ethno-supremacist racist head here again! You must be really desperate for Hasbara trolling money!
[...] ultra-leftist propagandist who labors under the misapprehension that he is a journalist.” In a recent post on his website, Blumenthal condemns the Israeli response to an insult from singer Macy Gray. The Israeli media is [...]
Almost all african blacks in israel today (ethiopian jews )were brought to israel from ethiopia by the israeli government. Israel made the voluntary decision to fund and airlift over 80,000 black ethiopuans to israel. This is the equivalent of america airlifting over 3 million africans to america. If you would like to do a story on racism in the middle east I suggest you examine the 2005 incident where 28 sudanese refugees were beaten to death in cairo because they were squatting in a middle class neighborhood. That may be more consequential than some facebook postings.
rose,
you really are an insipid little twit…and carrying on circular arguments with you is just a waste of time
hizbollah and hamas make no differentiation between zionists and jews…why do you?
you dont…but you play a nice semantic game…then use disconnected jews like max, philly, capo dickie and luminaries like falk as shields
and no…i dont have an excuse for racist drunks…i however know that drunken american college kids are not representative of israeli society, are not monsters, and are not the best subjects for man on the street interviews (which are for entertainment purposes only…and have no scientific or educational value)
and there is no “the” in watchmen…keep proving that your knowledge of the novel doesnt get past the wiki page
[...] The Macy Gray story is getting out. On Facebook in response to her request for input, I told her to go ahead and [...]
[...] You can read more about this latest despicable Israeli act of racism at Max Blumenthal’s blog. As you can see from the video below, such racism is not uncommon in [...]
[...] day after the American pop star Macy Gray announced controversial plans to perform in Tel Aviv in March, we sat down for a drink at Pua, a bar nestled in the heart of one of [...]
[...] day after the American pop star Macy Gray announced controversial plans to perform in Tel Aviv in March, we sat down for a drink at Pua, a bar nestled in the heart of one of [...]
[...] day after the American pop star Macy Gray announced controversial plans to perform in Tel Aviv in March, we sat down for a drink at Pua, a bar nestled in the heart of one of [...]
[...] day after the American pop star Macy Gray announced controversial plans to perform in Tel Aviv in March, we sat down for a drink at Pua, a bar nestled in the heart of one of [...]
[...] day after the American pop star Macy Gray announced controversial plans to perform in Tel Aviv in March, we sat down for a drink at Pua, a bar nestled in the heart of one of [...]