Hit songwriter Matisyahu accused two concert venues of anti-Semitism after his show was canceled in February.
Matisyahu is a Jewish-American reggae artist best known for hit songs such as “The Rock”.king without a crown” and “sunlight” was informed hours before his show that the venue was canceling. Venue Meow Wolf in Santa Fe, New Mexico, was the first to cancel shows on Wednesday. according to Go to the local outlet KOAT. Staff cited employee safety concerns over suspected anti-Semitic protests.
Matisyahu talks about the Israel-Hamas war
The Rialto Theater in Tucson, Arizona, said on Facebook Thursday that it had canceled Matisyahu's performance. post“The safety of our employees and customers is always our top priority. We are in the process of refunding ticket holders. We apologize for the delay in notifying you of your cancellation.”
king without a crown
“Tonight in Tucson, we offered to cover the staffing shortage with our own money, but to no avail,” Matisyahu said. Said on Twitter following the cancellation. “They do this either because they are anti-Semitic or because they confuse empathy for Palestinians with hatred for people like me who have empathy for both Israelis and Palestinians. It’s because I’m there.”
— Matisyahu (@matisyahu) February 15, 2024
Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber expressed zero tolerance for the allegations of racism and discrimination related to Matisyahu's absence from the performance. “There is a big difference between protesting the Netanyahu government's policies in Gaza and canceling a performance by a Jewish American artist in Santa Fe. Anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, bigotry, bigotry, racism, There is no excuse for intolerance, not here, not now, and never ever,” he said in a statement shared by KOAT. “The war in Israel and Gaza is a humanitarian tragedy and we should all join in the call for the safe return of all hostages and an end to the killings. We need to see peace in the Middle East .” (Related article: Pro-Palestinian protests call on people to denounce Hamas violence. Things got even more violent after that.)
sunlight
Kathy Rivers, Rialto Theater Executive Director Said Fox 10 said the decision to cancel the show was “based on safety.” The temperature of the day varied and the tone was not what we had set. ” Rialto Theatre, Meow Wolf and Matisyahu did not immediately respond to The Daily Caller's request for comment.
