Stuart Derdeyn of the Vancouver Sun has written a piece about an upcoming Roger Waters event organized by vehemently anti-Israel Jews-in-name-only group Independent Jewish Voices Canada.
But it is does not read like an objective report about the event, but rather as a fully blown advertisement for it.
Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters to speak at Vancouver human rights forum
Roger Waters: Live For Palestine
Oct. 26, 7 p.m. | St. Andrew’s Wesley, 1022 Nelson St.
Tickets and info: From $5 – $20 suggested donation. No one turned away
Pink Floyd co-founder and songwriter Rogers Waters discusses his evolution into a Palestinian rights activist in a conversation with Martha Roth of Independent Jewish Voices Canada at a human rights event at St. Andrews Wesley Church on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m.
Since founding Pink Floyd in 1965, Waters has gained international acclaim for his prescient and concise lyrical analysis of the individual and society. His recent US + Them tour which has two stops at Rogers Arena on Oct. 28 and 29 (ticketmaster.ca), is receiving rave reviews for its targeted criticism of contemporary American politics, global corporatism and more.
Waters latest solo release on Columbia Records is titled Is This the Life We Really Want?
Since 2006, Water has been a vocal supporter of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement directed at putting pressure on Israel to resolve Israeli-Palestinian political relations.
The BDS movement is controversial and has been widely disparaged by many organizations such as B’nai Brith and Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.
Both the BDS movement and Waters himself have been accused of being anti-semitic.
B’nai Brith is hosting screenings of a documentary titled Wish You Weren’t Here, by Canadian celebrity author Ian Halperin (The Final Years of Michael Jackson). The Vancouver event is on Oct. 29. BDS supporters allege that the film targeting Waters is part of a smear campaign to discredit the movement. Director Halperin is on record stating he believes Waters is “perpetrating hatred towards the state of Israel and the Jewish people.”
Waters’ opinions and experiences around the allegations being made will be covered in the interview at St. Andrews Wesley.
Note how the event time, and other event info, is mentioned, including pricing and suggested donation! There is even a link to ticketmaster to purchase Roger Waters concert tickets.
Derdeyn also calls the event a “human rights forum”, even though it is clearly nothing of the kind: it is a forum for bashing Israel and supporting BDS (as well as a way for Waters to deflect accusations of antisemitism since it is an event organized by a so-called Jewish group).
https://www.facebook.com/IJVcanada/posts/1763790970306918
From the event’s description:
Legendary co-founder of Pink Floyd interviewed live on stage in Vancouver about his evolution as a human rights activist and how he came to be involved with the Palestinian cause.
Suggested donation $5 — $20. No one turned away.
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We acknowledge that his event is being held on unceded Coast Salish Territories:sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) nations
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Roger Waters to talk human rights at Vancouver forumOn Thursday, October 26 2017, Roger Waters, the creative power and songwriting force behind Pink Floyd, will discuss his evolution as a human rights activist and his support for Palestinian rights during his Vancouver concert visit.
Waters’ long-time political activism became focused on Israel/Palestine in 2006. He is one of the most prominent celebrities to join the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement, speaking out against Israel as an apartheid state as well as its mistreatment of Palestinians living under Israeli military control in the Occupied Territories.
In 1965, Waters co-founded the progressive rock band Pink Floyd, often called “the best band of all time.” He performed his iconic album The Wall in 1990 to commemorate the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Waters has been widely attacked for his views, and accused of being anti-Semitic because of his criticism of Israel. But as Israeli journalist, Gideon Levy writes, when Waters “talks about Israel, it’s with pain, criticism and anger, but not hatred, and anti-Semitism is not part of the picture here.”
It is clear which position this so-called journalist Derdeyn is taking: besides the shameless promotion of the event, his language gives it away. The BDS movement is said to be “directed at putting pressure on Israel to resolve Israeli-Palestinian political relations,” even though, as I have shown repeatedly, its goal is to destroy Israel (something Waters himself has even inadvertently admitted). And BDS is described as having been widely disparaged by many organizations, indicating unfair criticism.
If this is objective reporting, then I am a huge Roger Waters groupie.
