Cancelled for mentioning Gaza (at an HMD event)
JVL Introduction
Sssssh, don’t mention the genocide – well not that genocide in Gaza! This is one of the – if not the – most egregious examples of suppressing mention of Gaza in spaces deemed “inappropriate”. Razed Roof, a drama group for disabled people (a group who were also murdered by the Nazis) talked briefly about different genocides, noting the the Nazis killed 6 million Jews and 2 million others including Sinti and Roma, among others there is reference to Darfur, to Srebenica, to Cambodia and then one member of the group takes a very few seconds ( at c. 47’40”) that 70,000 have been indiscriminately killed and up to 90% displaced in Gaza.
The response was immediate; loss of funding and the group banned from using council premises. (As a former councillor, I have never heard of any other decision taken so quickly). The Council invoked the IHRA so called definition and the “council leader said that the decision to cut funding and access to the group “is not subject to negotiation or appeal”.” (my emph Ed)
At the end of the article is the letter sent to the Press by the convenor of Holocaust Survivors and Descendants against the genocide in Gaza that includes both a quote from and the full statement by the young man concerned. It is long past time that we truly learn the lessons of the Nazi Holocaust so that “Never Again” means what it says and that Holocaust Memorial Day is not misused to protect Israel (or any other perpetrators), which is a real dishonour to the Jewish and other victims of Naziism.
LL
This article was originally published by Middle East Eye on Wed 4 Feb 2026. Read the original here.
UK: Council reported disabilities drama group to police over Gaza genocide protest
Harlow Council accused theatre company for people with learning difficulties of promoting ‘extremist narratives’ over Gaza reference in Holocaust Memorial Day performance
Loading article text…
Shame on Harlow council,
Disgusting.
So Chris Vince MP says: “It is deeply frustrating that, at a moment when we should have been reflecting on these horrors, our attention has instead been diverted elsewhere.” Just what does he think the purpose of reflecting on the holocaust is if not to learn the lessons of the past and apply them today? I can only assume his real worry is that mentioning Gaza will “divert our attention” to the appalling genocide complicity of the government in which he serves.
This response to members of a theatre group with learning difficulties and disabilities seems cruel in the extreme.
the great bob Dylans blowing in wind is so relivent 64 yrs after it was first song. It is sad that some poeple are not able to understand the real meaning of this song.They walked told lies say it was a matter of opion not fact. What a disgrace they are to all humanity. At some point they need to wake up and find their humanity. As for the so called Labour MP he is what he is.
Ian, ‘the great Bob Dylan ‘ also wrote the Zionist anthem, Neighbourhood Bully.