Singer Achinoam Nini (known as Noa outside Israel) and her talented musical partner Gil Dor, both veteran peace activists, were on a tour of Australia this week. Rabbi Gersh Lazarow of Temple Beth Israel, which hosted them in Melbourne, bravely pushed back against right-wing activists who demanded a boycott of the two leftists. According to the rabbi, “only” two Jewish communities in Melbourne removed their sponsorship of Noa’s tour in the wake of the controversy. Some of the wealthy members of the community withdrew their support. Not all. The musical-political event that took place in Sydney, sponsored by the New Israel Fund, was sold out. The hall has 250 seats.
But then came the phone call from Israel with the message that the city of Lod canceled Noa’s planned performance at the “bringing Lod residents together” event next month, “in light of due sensitivity, the mayor prefers to avoid unnecessary tensions and emotions that could cause damage and result in the opposite reaction of pulling apart population groups in Lod.” Lod joined a growing list of Israeli and Jewish communities that have rejected an Israeli artist who is known around the world. Cancellations are usually said to be due to “technical reasons” or “security reasons.”
