Rototom Sunsplash
| Rototom Sunsplash | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Reggae, |
| Location(s) | Benicassim, Spain |
| Years active | 1994-present |
| Website | Official Website [1] |
Rototom Sunsplash is a large European reggae festival, it takes place every summer at Benicassim, a few miles north of Valencia in Spain. The festival imitates the traditional Jamaican Reggae Sunsplash and since 1994 calls from various European countries thousands of reggae passionated people, thanks to concerts of international musicians, often many Jamaicans.
On August 17, 2015 the festival canceled the scheduled appearance of the american jewish artists Matisyahu, at the request of the BDS Movement, due to his support of zionism and of many Israel goverment actions which this movement considers to be criminal actions, such as the Gaza flotilla raid or the Operation Protective Edge.[1][2][3] The BDS Movement in País Valencià explicitly stated that their request for boicott was not because Matisyahu was jewish, but because of the previous reasons mentioned.[4] In spite of that, the decision led many organizations around the world to criticize the organization of showing racism toward Jews.[5] Two days later the Spanish government condemned the decision to cancel his appearance.[6] On August 19, the festival apologized to Matisyahu and re-invited him to perform as original scheduled, following the pressure of the sectors of opinion that presented the decision as jewish discrimination.[7] The organizers released a statement saying they "made a mistake, due to the boycott and the campaign of pressure, coercion and threats employed by the BDS."[8]
Gallery
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Rototom festival beach, 2012
See also
External links
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- ^ Coherencia ante todo: no al defensor del ejército israelí en el Rototom (in Spanish)
- ^ Southern Jewish Life Magazine: Matisyahu headlining pro-Zionist festival in New Orleans
- ^ THE JEWISH CHRONICLE ONLINE: The moment when Matisyahu lost his cool
- ^ BDS País Valencià: "Never anyone from the BDS blamed Matisyahu for being jewish"
- ^ Jewish group sends Spain's leader letter about Matisyahu
- ^ Spain condemns cancellation of Jewish musician Matisyahu at reggae festival
- ^ Spanish festival reinvites Matisyahu after worldwide criticism
- ^ A Rototom Sunsplash public institutional declaration regarding the cancellation of Matisyahu