‘They are turning him into a hero': Kneecap solidarity gig held in Dublin
Pro-Palestine supporters criticised the decision by British authorities to bring a charge against the performer instead of focusing on the Israeli government's actions against the Palestinian people.
O hAnnaidh, 27, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in November last year.
Hundreds of Kneecap supporters greeted O hAnnaidh as he arrived at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Wednesday morning, alongside fellow Kneecap rappers Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh.
During the hearing, his defence team argued the case should be thrown out, citing a technical error in the way the charge against him was brought.
The case has been adjourned until September 26, when the judge will rule on whether he has the jurisdiction to try the case.
At the protest session at Connolly Books on Wednesday afternoon, several artists played Irish traditional music in solidarity with the rappers and Palestine.
Musician Ru O'Shea, who performed at the demonstration, said charging O hAnnaidh had turned him into 'a hero'.
'I think it's been a huge misstep by the powers that be to go after him in the first place,' he told the PA news agency.
'I reckon that they don't have a thing on him, and I think they are turning him into a hero, and I think we need a hero.
'What's happening in Palestine right now, it's gotten to such an extreme that it's waking a lot of people up, including the British who might not have ever seen it otherwise and stayed in that bubble forever.'
O'Shea's friend John Feehan said: 'I think people are maybe starting to look up a little bit in Britain, and I think things like what's happening with Kneecap is a catalyst for people to be like 'Oh, wait a minute, what's actually happening here?'. So I hope there's momentum, but I really don't know.'
Dubliner Aoife Powell, 19, said she came out to protest because she is 'angry' at the decision to charge an artist rather than focus on what is happening to the people of Gaza.
'I'm here because it just worries me that the fact that governments are focused on artists expressing themselves rather than the actual problem, which is obviously the genocide in Gaza,' she told PA.
'It's a little bit disheartening to see there's so much pressure being put on these artists to stop saying what they truly think and to stop standing on the right side of history.
'I feel like it's a distraction from what's actually happening.
'When a government tries to silence people, they should learn that they can never silence people. I feel like the public would get more angry at that.'
Sean O'Grady is from Coleraine in Northern Ireland but has lived in Dublin for almost 70 years.
'I'm delighted with them (Kneecap), that they've done what they're doing, and they're getting plenty of publicity.
'The British government are crazy, I mean, what are they at?
'They're supplying a lot of the bombs, and a lot of the arms and ammunition to Israel to do what they're doing. So they should be ashamed of themselves instead of bringing in these people (to court) for stupid reasons.
'It's getting good publicity over there for the cause of the Palestinians.'
Dubliner Dermot Nolan said he attended his first Palestine protest in 1967, and while he remembers horrific events such as the Vietnam War, the scale of death and injuries in Gaza is the worst he has ever lived through.
'I'm here because it's important to for two reasons – first of all, to show our intolerance of the genocide and slaughter that's being carried out by the US, Nato and Israel.
'The second reason is the question of civil rights. We're protesting about the indictment of a member of the Irish group Kneecap.
'It is a sign of creeping authoritarianism which is happening in all the western countries and most clearly in Britain.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Spectator
24 minutes ago
- Spectator
What Lewis Goodall gets wrong about inheritance tax
Do you want to live in a world in which you are forbidden from giving things, such as your time, your money or your labour, to other people? It has become increasingly common in recent years for those on the left of British politics to argue that it is illegitimate for people to receive a gift after someone has died – what we call 'inheritance'. For that is all that 'inheritance' is. A dead person gives you some things and you receive them. On Thursday, clips of Lewis Goodall's LBC show showed him saying people have no right to inherit from their parents and that he'd be happy if inheritance tax were 100 per cent. Abi Wilkinson argued for the same thing a few years ago in the Guardian. The position is that the only legitimate source of income or wealth is work. Money that is 'unearned' (of course it isn't actually unearned, unless it was stolen – it was earned by someone at some point then given to others) is not legitimate. How far does this objection to gifts go? Should people be forbidden from buying a car for their children or supplying the money for a house deposit? May spouses give things to each other? Could I give a friend money to help him set up a business? Can I give money to a charity or a church? Can I give money to my niece to help her with her maintenance costs through university? Can I pay for my son's food and let him live at home if he becomes unemployed? If the answer to all the above is 'yes' – as I suspect Lewis Goodall will say it is – then what is supposed to be different about gifts given upon death? Why does the fact that the giver (perhaps explicitly, through a will) decides to gift things only at the point of death make them any less legitimate than if the same gift were given ten minutes or ten years earlier? As alluded to at the start, if you ban receiving gifts (such as inheritance) you are also banning the making of gifts. Do you want to live in a world in which you are forbidden from giving things (your money; time; or labour) to other people? And of course money is only one kind of gift. We've already mentioned gifts such as cars, housing or food. But I might give someone my labour – for example, by helping paint a mate's garage; or helping my son learn finance by educating him from my own knowledge. People also give others advice and wisdom, or the gift of moral training, or the gift of praise (in Christian Communion services the Eucharist is described as a 'sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving'). If we banned financial gifts, how could we not also ban gifts in kind – especially if the ability to give gifts in kind depended upon the giver's financial circumstances (a rich person might be more able to take a day off work to help paint her friend's garage than a poor person would be)? Many people claim there is an inconsistency here, because those on the left do not typically object to gifts in the form of state benefits or public services. So their opponents say, 'Fine – if gifts are banned then let's ban benefits!' But to be fair to those on the left this point can be easily evaded by saying that benefits and public services aren't gifts. Instead, what happens is that all property – including all the fruits of everyone's labour – is owned collectively. Then 'we' decide how that property is spread out across society. So benefits are actually just like wages – they are the allocation that 'we', through our laws, make and permit. It is only when individuals attempt to subvert that collectively-determined allocation by giving things to other individuals that the problems start. Yet I reject the premise. I own my labour as myself. I am not a slave or intrinsically only a part of a social 'us'. The fruits of that labour are genuinely mine and I, as the genuine moral owner, am entitled to give them to other people. At which point it becomes genuinely theirs and they are entitled in turn to give it to or trade it with others. The fundamental defence of the moral ownership of property, including the moral right to gift that property to others and to receive such gifts myself, is that we own ourselves as individuals. And the fundamental objection to gifting – including to gifting in the form of inheritance – always boils down ultimately to the denial that we own ourselves. Which side are you on?
Scottish Sun
24 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
I moved to Spain 4 years ago & will never be bored of it – I don't work & pick my kids up from school & go to the pool
Jodie revealed how people can also make the move to Spain LIFE'S A BEACH I moved to Spain 4 years ago & will never be bored of it – I don't work & pick my kids up from school & go to the pool Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A MUM has shared how her family ditched the UK to live in Spain four years ago and will 'never be bored' of her new life. Jodie Marlow, who shares clips of her new sunny lifestyle online, shared how she doesn't miss the rainy weather at all, and spends her days enjoying the sun. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 UK mum Jodie Marlow has 17,000 followers who follow her new life in Spain Credit: Tiktok/JodieMarlow 5 Jodie picks her kids up from school at 1.30pm in summer and takes them straight to the pool Credit: Tiktok/JodieMarlow 5 Jodie said she will never get bored of her life in Spain Credit: Getty Jodie, who is a stay-at-home mum, said her two boys finish school at 1.30pm in summer and they spend afternoons playing in the pool. In a clip on her @jodiemar1ow account, which has over 1,790 likes, she said: 'Four years in & don't think I'll ever get bored of this.' She added that the weather is perfect for her, with temperatures in the top 20s or 30s every day. Jodie said: 'It's not too hot, not too cold. Like, I can wear my nice summer dresses, which I love.' When her kids are at school, she spends her time picking up fruit and veg at the local market, or going for a pamper, including laser hair surgery. She then does housework before picking up the boys and having some lunch with them. Meanwhile, weekends are spent exploring gorgeous nearby beaches and dining out in local restaurants. MOVING TO SPAIN Finally, Jodie advised people on how they can also make the move to Spain. She shared: 'If you hold a UK British passport, you can't just move to Spain like you could pre-Brexit, you do need a visa. 'The working visa you could look into getting dependent on if you've got a specialised job. I quit my job and did a complete 180 moving to Spain - beer is just $3 a pint and my life is so much better 'The self-employed visa, basically they said to us it's just impossible to get, so we didn't even try with that. 'But the digital nomad visa allows anyone that is working online, as long as you are earning a set amount of money that provides for if there's four of you for the family, you can pay for all four of you, and they set out exactly how much that would be.' Since Brexit, UK citizens, and non-EU citizens require a visa to stay longer than 90 days. 5 Jodie said the weather is usually perfect for her Credit: Getty SOCIAL REACTION Many people were quick to chime in and comment on her new life in Spain, and praise her for making the move. One said: 'It's beautiful there, my sister moved there 26 yrs ago, no regrets.' A second added: 'I don't think you could ever get bored of that lifestyle.' Meanwhile, and a third joked: 'You sure you wouldn't rather be stuck indoors looking out at the rain?' Jodie replied: 'deffo don't miss that side of the uk.' 5 Jodie advised getting a digital nomad visa if you want to make the move Credit: Alamy
The Herald Scotland
24 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Queen delights racegoers but has hopes of winning dashed at York Racecourse
The Queen was applauded by racegoers as she arrived at the racecourse wearing a multicoloured floral dress by Fiona Clare, a blue coat by Anna Valentine with a horseshoe brooch, and a cream Philip Treacy hat. The Queen speaks to jockey Ryan Moore, who rode Minnie Hauk to victory in the Pertemps Network Yorkshire Oaks during the Ebor Festival at York Racecourse (Ian Forsyth/PA) She was greeted by Vice Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire Chris Legard, the chairman of York Race Committee, Bridget Guerin, and the chief executive of York Racecourse William Derby. Camilla watched from a box as the RAF Falcons display team performed a parachute display, before taking a salute and hearing a rendition of the national anthem by Emily Guerin. After the first race the Queen unveiled a plaque in recognition of the Juddmonte International race, which took place at York Racecourse last year and was named by the Longines World Racing Awards as the world's best race of 2024. She then met racecourse staff and representatives from local charities supported by the track, including the headteacher of Clifton Green Primary School, food support charity the Collective Sharehouse, and walking buddy project Move The Masses. Camilla unveils a plaque in recognition of the Juddmonte International race (Ian Forsyth/PA) Camilla was presented with a jar of honey by Selina and Harry Silk of Knavesmire Nectar, whose bees are based at the racecourse. The couple said they bonded with the Queen, who also has her own hives, over the 'troubles of beekeeping'. Mr Silk said: 'We talked about the troubles she'd had this year with swarming and wasps. I think everyone's had the same problems this year.' The Queen also presented the trophy to the owners of Minnie Hauk, the winner of the Yorkshire Oaks race. But her hopes of a winner were dashed when three of her horses – Rainbows Edge, Aeolian and Purple Rainbow – were beaten. The late Queen Elizabeth II was a passionate owner and breeder of thoroughbreds and had more than 20 Royal Ascot winners during her 70-year reign. Charles and Camilla have taken on her stable of horses and enjoyed their first Royal Ascot winner in 2023 when their horse Desert Hero triumphed in the King George V Stakes.
