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There is a chronologically adult 43-year-old man in Seattle, who refers to himself as “Macklemore” after a plastic-wrapped superhero toy. He does not like Israel. Should we care?
Macklemore, whose real name is Gregory Bishop, is a professional singer of middling impact, who won two Grammys 14 years ago and has since settled into a moderately successful career in which he releases music to unexceptional response and opens for more popular and more acclaimed musicians.
One of those more celebrated singers is Ed Sheeran, who has sold more than 200 million albums and whose live performances are currently the most in-demand tickets in the music industry. Bishop was opening for Sheeran in New Jersey earlier this month. In between his songs, he proclaimed, “Free Palestine,” which is fine, asserted that opposing Israeli military actions is not antisemitic, which is accurate, and accused Israel of apartheid and genocide, which is offensive, untrue and hateful.
Robert Kraft, who owns the New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium, where Sheeran appeared last weekend, objected to Bishop participating in the concert on his property given Bishop’s statements on stage at the New Jersey show. Kraft, who founded the excellent Blue Square Alliance Against Hate, said that Gillette “has a longstanding commitment to providing a welcoming environment for all guests and ensuring that events held at our venue do not provide a platform for hate speech.”
Kraft founded Blue Square to combat all forms of hate, with a particular focus on antisemitism. Depriving Bishop of a public platform from which to spew his ugly message is very much in line with that objective. Owners of comparable facilities in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Dallas, Charlotte and Tampa registered similar objections and Bishop was dropped from the tour.
While Kraft’s critics have fretted that he is providing greater visibility to Bishop’s objectionable message, making it clear that there are consequences for antizionist and antisemitic speech in the public square is a laudable victory. Such sentiments have spread rapidly throughout the entertainment industry since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist acts, and so Kraft and his fellow stadium owners are acting entirely appropriately when they honor the valued principle of free speech while also exercising their right to protect their guests from painful verbal abuse.
Just as Nazis were permitted to march in Skokie, Bishop has the constitutional right to speak out against the Jewish state’s efforts to protect itself and its people. But the Constitution does not give him the right to deliver that message at Gillette Stadium any more than he has the right to deliver that message in front of a synagogue or Jewish day school.
To distinguish between these two alternatives, let us consider the case of actor Mark Ruffalo, who has played the role of the Incredible Hulk in several Marvel/Disney movies. Ruffalo, like Bishop, believes that he is entitled to voice his opinions regarding Israel and other subjects, whether they are informed or not. That is correct. But once onscreen, the Hulk does not attempt to convince his fellow Avengers to support Hamas or Hezbollah. So I am allowed to watch the Hulk smash things without being required to hear Ruffalo’s political beliefs.
Bishop does not give his audience that option. If they want to hear him sing, they must also hear him rage against Israel. Kraft is well within his rights to deny him access to his stadium.
The most helpful insights into this situation come from a Jewish mother named Alecia Beth Moore, another professional singer, who goes by the pseudonym of “Pink.” Moore, who has Grammys of her own but does not use them as an excuse to engage in geopolitical grandstanding, said the following:
“I have never asked for another artist to be silenced and I’m not asking now. I don’t need anyone fired, and I don’t need a refund. What I need is to be able to say, as a Jewish mom, ‘that scared me, and it scared people I love,’ without being told our fear is just propaganda …”
Well said, Ms. Moore.
Dan Schnur is the U.S. Politics Editor for the Jewish Journal. He teaches courses in politics, communications, and leadership at UC Berkeley, USC and Pepperdine. He hosts the monthly webinar “The Dan Schnur Political Report” for the Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall. Follow Dan’s work at www.danschnurpolitics.com
