Latest news with #LongLivetheIntifada
Express Tribune
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Cornell cancels Kehlani performance over her stance on Gaza
Cornell University has dropped singer Kehlani from its annual Slope Day concert, citing concerns over her views on the Israel-Gaza conflict. The university's decision followed campus-wide backlash surrounding Kehlani's outspoken support for Palestinians, which some students and administrators viewed as divisive and antisemitic. In an April 23 email to the Cornell community, President Michael I. Kotlikoff said the singer's inclusion had 'injected division and discord' into what is intended to be a unifying campus event. Critics pointed to a 2024 music video in which Kehlani wore a kaffiyeh-adorned jacket and dancers waved Palestinian flags, with the phrase 'Long Live the Intifada' appearing on screen. Kotlikoff noted that the university had received 'grave concerns' from students and faculty regarding the singer's past public statements and social media posts. Criticism intensified following the announcement of the Slope Day lineup, particularly from Cornellians for Israel, a student group that claimed Kehlani's presence would marginalize Jewish and Zionist students. The group launched a petition and a GoFundMe campaign, raising over $28,500 to fund a replacement act. The decision also comes amid broader federal scrutiny of university responses to antisemitism. Earlier this month, the White House froze $1 billion in federal funding for Cornell as part of an investigation into alleged campus discrimination. Not all students agreed with the university's choice. Muna Mohamed, a senior and co-chair of Black Students United, said she was disappointed, describing the cancellation as a dismissal of inclusive representation for queer students and students of color. Kehlani has not publicly commented on the decision. In past interviews, she acknowledged the backlash she received over her stance on Gaza. No replacement has been named for the May 7 event, which now faces renewed scrutiny over inclusion and campus free speech.
New York Times
23-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Cornell Cancels Kehlani Performance Over Her Stance on the War in Gaza
Cornell University dropped a popular R&B singer from its annual campus concert over what the school's president said were antisemitic and anti-Israel sentiments she had espoused. The singer, Kehlani, has been an outspoken opponent of Israel's war in Gaza, speaking out at concerts and on social media. In a 2024 music video for the song 'Next 2 U,' Kehlani danced in a jacket adorned with kaffiyehs as dancers waved Palestinian flags in the background. During the video's introduction, the phrase 'Long Live the Intifada' appeared against a dark background. Furor over the singer's selection spread across Cornell's campus and beyond after the school announced the lineup for the concert, an annual celebration called Slope Day that follows the last day of classes. The Ivy League university is among dozens being investigated by the White House over allegations of antisemitism, part of the Trump administration's targeting of universities. Earlier this month, the White House froze $1 billion in funding for Cornell. Cornell's president, Michael I. Kotlikoff, wrote in an email on Wednesday that 'although it was not the intention, the selection of Kehlani as this year's headliner has injected division and discord' into the event. 'In the days since Kehlani was announced, I have heard grave concerns from our community that many are angry, hurt and confused that Slope Day would feature a performer who has espoused antisemitic, anti-Israel sentiments in performances, videos and on social media,' he wrote. The protests over the war in Gaza have exposed broad disagreement about when criticism of Israel veers into antisemitic behavior. To some, the word 'intifada,' which translates into rebellion or uprising, implies a call for violence against Israelis and Jews. But some pro-Palestinian demonstrators who use the term in chants regard it as a cry for liberation and freedom from oppression. Mr. Kotlikoff said that his decision had come after meeting with members of the student board that planned the concert. The board members agreed that their choice had 'compromised what is meant to be an inclusive event,' Mr. Kotlikoff said. A representative for Kehlani did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In an interview last year on the Breakfast Club podcast, Kehlani, who uses the pronouns she and they, said that they had 'experienced a lot of pushback' and 'a lot of loss' in response to their statements and social media posts about Gaza. The move to rescind Kehlani's invitation was an apparent reversal by Mr. Kotlikoff, who told students in a meeting last week that it was too late to find a replacement for the May 7 concert, according to the student newspaper, The Cornell Daily Sun. The administration had not been aware of the singer's stances, he said. Muna Mohamed, a senior who is the history co-chair of Black Students United at Cornell, was disappointed by the decision. She said that, as a queer person of color, she had been excited by what Kehlani's participation in Slope Day represented. 'I was ecstatic,' she said. And then, 'to see it kind of torn from us so quickly, it was kind of like, oh, our happiness never really mattered in the long run.' Cornellians for Israel, a student group, had called on the school to replace Kehlani as the headliner. In an Instagram post last week, the group wrote that choosing Kehlani to perform at an event geared toward the student body 'effectively communicates that Israeli, Jewish and Zionist students are not a welcome part of that community.' The group also circulated a petition and started a GoFundMe drive that had raised more than $28,500 by Wednesday to pay for a new performer. On Tuesday, Senator Rick Scott of Florida, a Republican, weighed in on social media, writing that the university 'is making it clear where it stands' by including Kehlani in the concert program. Amanda Silberstein, a member of Cornellians for Israel's board and a junior, said she was relieved by the university's decision. Ms. Silberstein said that Kehlani was welcome to hold different opinions, but she questioned why the singer had been invited at all. 'This was never about politics,' Ms. Silberstein said. 'It was about the hate and the vitriol and the vile disgust that she expressed with a significant portion of the student population who was also funding her performance.' Before the first day of classes last fall, pro-Palestinian demonstrators broke a glass door and spray-painted campus buildings with phrases, including 'Israel bombs, Cornell pays.' A Cornell Ph.D. student who is a Gambian-British citizen and who participated in demonstrations left the country this year after facing possible deportation, one of several college students the Trump administration has targeted. Last year, Mr. Kotlikoff faced backlash after the school invited another controversial guest from the opposite side of the political spectrum: Ann Coulter, a conservative commentator. At the time, Mr. Kotlikoff defended the decision as part of a commitment to freedom of speech and diversity of opinion.
