Israeli fans of Lorde sue activists who brought about a boycott

Back in December, Lorde cancelled her planned June 2018 gig in Tel Aviv, Israel, after being convinced in an open letter to “join the artistic boycott of Israel” by two New Zealand activists. Justine Sachs and Nadia Abu-Shanab, who penned the piece, now face a lawsuit over “indignity caused by their discriminatory actions”, with damages amounting to €10,600. Those filing the claim are three teenage Israeli fans of the 21-year-old singer, represented by the Israeli law group Shurat HaDin.

This lawsuit appears to be the first filed under a new Israeli anti-boycott law, one that is bound to prove contentious given its seeming conflict with the ideals of free speech, a right that was practiced by the New Zealand activists in December. The original plea of the women was outlined on the basis that, “Playing in Tel Aviv will be seen as giving support to the policies of the Israeli government, even if you make no comment on the political situation.” Sachs has since spoken out on Medium condemning what she believes are intimidation tactics employed by Shurat HaDin: “Instead of scaring us, these bullying tactics only embolden us and make it self-evident that there is a right and wrong in this situation.”

If anti-boycott laws continue to spawn such lawsuits, artists like Lauryn Hill, Elvis Costello and Lana Del Rey may have all just avoided legal trouble, having cancelled concerts there. The Law for Prevention of Damage to State of Israel through Boycott was passed to counter the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement (BDS), an international pressure campaign that focuses on ending the apartheid regime in Israel. Pink Floyd's Roger Waters and Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore, as well as directors Ken Loach and Mike Leigh, are campaigners of BDS who criticised Nick Cave’s decision to play Israel in November of last year. Cave responded, however, by considering the BDS movement as a way to promote the Palestinian cause by way of “bullying”. He went to Israel on his tour because he wanted to, as he said at a press conference, “make a principled stand against anyone who wants to censor and silence musicians”.