Scottish National Poet Demands Boycott of Israeli Dancers

By Haaretz August 30, 2012

Liz Lochhead, the Scot’s Makar, or national poet has joined a group calling for a boycott of the Israeli dancing group Batsheva, set to perform at the Edinburgh International Festival.

Pro-Palestinian activists have announced they would attempt to disrupt the opening performance on Thursday night, which was attended by Israel’s Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat.

The performance was disrupted four times as protestors within the auditorium shouted “Free Palestine” and had to be removed by security, after which the dancers resumed the performance.

The current atmosphere makes it increasingly difficult for Israeli groups to perform in Britain. Inviting Batsheva to take part in the festival drew harsh criticism from prominent culture figures in Scotland, including an online campaign entitled “Don’t dance with Israeli Apartheid.”

For more, go to Haaretz.com

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO