Patti Smith, Noname, and more join musicians showing support for Palestine

More than 600 musicians have signed an open letter titled #MusiciansForPalestine in solidarity with the Palestinian people, calling for an end to the state of Israel’s violent occupation, and encouraging artists themselves to take action.

Among the many musicians that have added their signatures to the letter are Noname, Patti Smith, Cecile Believe, Questlove and Black Thought of The Roots, Rage Against the Machine, Run the Jewels, System of a Down’s Serj Tankian, Talib Kweli, Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore, Nicolàs Jaar, and Vic Mensa.

“As musicians, we cannot be silent,” reads the letter, published on Thursday (May 27). “Today it is essential that we stand with Palestine.”

“Complicity with Israeli war crimes is found in silence, and today silence is not an option. Silence is not an option as the brutal Israeli bombardment of besieged Gaza claimed more than 245 lives in the last weeks. Silence is not an option as residents of Sheikh Jarrah in occupied Jerusalem are continuously forced out of their homes.”

The letter goes on to demand “justice, dignity, and the right to self-determination for the Palestinian people and all who are fighting colonial dispossession and violence across the planet”. It also suggests a boycott of Israel’s “complicit cultural institutions”, adding: “We believe this is crucial to one day live in a world without segregation and apartheid.”

This week, another open letter written by Palestinian creatives — titled  Letter Against Apartheid — similarly called for an end to Israeli occupation, backed by artists and writes including Sally Rooney, Nan Goldin, Mykki Blanco, and Naomi Klein.

Since last Friday’s ceasefire, in-person protests in solidarity with Palestine have also taken place across the world, with one demonstration drawing a record-breaking crowd of an estimated 180,000 people in London alone.

Revisit Dazed’s guide on how to talk about Palestine here, and read the full #MusiciansForPalestine open letter and list of signatories here.