Sports boycott now!
Published
by
Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi
JVL Introduction
If only the Guardian would publish more courageous pieces like this cry for boycott action from Jonathan Liew – a sportswriter who demonstrates here more integrity than the most of the rest of the UK press pack combined. Stand by to defend him against the inevitable smears.
NWI
This article was originally published by The Guardian on Fri 22 Nov 2024. Read the original here.
Sport may be a blunt tool of social change, but it’s time to take a stand against Israel
As the bombing continues in Gaza, the inaction of bodies such as Fifa and the IOC becomes a glaring, conscious choice
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Eurovision Song Contest, football’s European Cup, and various other events supposedly restricted to European nations, all allow Israel to compete. Why? End the privilege now.
Personally, something that everyone of us can do is to boycott Israel and USA products.
I am watching the labels and avoiding to buy product from companies that support Israel
Absolutely right! It’s not ‘just sport’ or ‘just a bit of fun at Eurovision’. The Israeli Government was willing to go to the extent of providing armed guards for their Eurovision entrant last year because participation in such events is so important to them in trying to present their state as a normal country, instead of the pariah it is.
Those competitors who wear the colours of Israel, or who fly its flag (because Eurovison is about states, not national broadcasters, whatever the organsisers might say) are trying to distract from the apartheid and genocide of their state and the war crimes of their leaders. Their participation is also crucial in masking the abhorrence of the world from the population of Israel. Their media give them only a very small dose of reality, and indeed, are increasingly giving a platform to and normalising extremists such as Amos Azaria of the far-right ‘Uri Tzafon’ settler movement.
Only a total ban on Israel’s participation in international events will convey to the population the world’s horror at the crimes against humanity being committed by their government in their name.
No competitor should be forced to share a sports settting or a stage with a representative of Israel.