Pink has broken her silence over the backlash surrounding her criticism of rapper Macklemore, saying she was speaking from a place of fear as a Jewish woman and mother.
The singer faced heavy criticism after sharing a social media post calling for Macklemore to be dropped as support act on Ed Sheeran’s current US tour over pro-Palestinian comments he made to packed stadiums.
Macklemore has performed his pro-Palestinian song Hind’s Hall while supporting Sheeran, with footage of the war in Gaza displayed on screens behind him.
Sign up to The Nightly’s newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.
In a lengthy Instagram statement posted to Instagram, Pink acknowledged she should have used her own words rather than reposting someone else’s message.
“A repost isn’t a statement, and a meme isn’t a spine,” she wrote.
Pink said her response was not prompted by Macklemore’s support for Palestine, but his words aimed at Jews considering what she suggested is his history of antisemitism, including when he performed in a “hooked nose, a black beard and a bowl cut” in 2014.
Macklemore claimed the outfit was simply a “random costume” but Pink said in her post, “Every Jew I know knew exactly what it was”.
The pop star took issue with the rapper delivering his pro-Palestine message “with violent images from a war on the screens” and taking the mic “to tell all the Jews in the stadium that it wasn’t about them.”
‘I have never asked for another artist to be silenced’
Pink said Macklemore doesn’t get to decide if Jews feel targeted by his condemnation of Israel.
“That’s what prompted my repost. Not ‘Free Palestine’, and not anyone’s right to say it,” she stated.
“I have never asked for another artist to be silenced and I’m not asking now.”
Pink, who is Jewish, said she wanted to be able to express her fear without being accused of supporting the war in Gaza.
“What I need is to be able to say, as a Jewish mom, ‘that scared me, and it scared people I love’, without being told our fear is just propaganda, and without being told I’m somehow cool with genocide because I noticed?”
‘Protecting innocent life comes first’
The singer also reiterated her position on the Israel-Gaza conflict, saying Hamas is a terrorist organisation while Palestinians deserve a future that respects their humanity.
“Protecting innocent life comes first, everywhere, and nobody should ever celebrate the death of a child. Anybody’s child,” she stated.
Pink said she had spent years publicly supporting causes that had attracted criticism and described the latest backlash as particularly isolating.
“And now I’m standing up for my own people, and I thought I knew going in how lonely that would be. And it’s lonelier than that. But I’m doing it anyway.”
Pink has broken her silence after sharing calls for Macklemore to be dropped from Ed Sheeran’s tour over his anti-Israel comments. Credit: Instagram
She also addressed criticism from people accusing her of supporting Israel’s actions.
“You don’t have to agree with one thing Israel’s government does to not want the Jewish family two rows down from you to be scared or targeted at a concert,” she stated.
“That’s the only thing I’m asking anybody for.
“To the ones who are frightened this week, Jewish or Muslim or Palestinian or Israeli or just tired of all of it: I see you. And if anybody wants to really know what I think, just ask me. I’m right here. I’ve never been hard to find. And I’ll keep speaking out, in my own words.”
Her comments come after Macklemore defended his pro-Palestinian statements, saying criticism of Israel was not criticism of Jewish people.
“To all of my Jewish brothers and sisters: criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide in no way is a criticism of you,” he said.
“My message is for peace; love for all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect, and equality.”
