The below letter was published on November 17, 2011 in response to media reports that suggest Lady Gaga went on and scheduled a performance in Israel on summer 2012
May 4, 2011
Dear Lady Gaga,
We are a group of about 250 Israeli citizens who support the human rights-based Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) . We learned through the media that Israeli producers try to lure you into performing this summer in Israel, thus undermining a growing international movement to end Israel's impunity and promote a just solution that respects human rights and international law in Palestine\Israel. We therefore would like to urge you not to perform in Israel at this time.
About a year ago Palestinian demonstrators in Hebron (Al-Khalil) danced to your song , “Poker Face”, to counter Israeli propaganda, video-clipped in their own forcefully closed and evacuated Shuhada street. In this area Israel dispossessed tens of thousands of people from their homes to allow for a Jews-only settlement of a few hundreds. The dance was held in front of the gates of that same closed street. The song's choice was a cry for the world to stop buying into Israel's branding of itself as “advanced” and “enlightened”, a branding which is maintained also by international performances in Israel. Just a few weeks after that dance, the Israeli army locked down adjacent shops , collectively punishing Palestinian shopkeepers in the Old City. It also banned the peaceful demonstrations from the area. The demonstrations are led by a local youth group which is committed to complete non-violence.
