Jewish musicians have told a royal commission hearing that their views on Zionism made them the targets of vilification and boycotting.<\/p>\n
The royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion heard from Deborah Conway and Joshua Moshe on Monday: both were members of a WhatsApp group for Jewish creatives and academics, the contents of which was leaked by the media and some of the members\u2019 personal information made public.<\/p>\n
Conway, who became a household name in the 1980s as a singer-songwriter, says she faced backlash for publicly declaring herself as a Zionist even before the group was leaked.<\/p>\n
She described Zionism as central to being Jewish, explaining the belief that Jews have a right to exist in Israel as their ancestral homeland.<\/p>\n
Conway stressed Zionism did not imply a support for the Israeli government, but despite this says she has faced vicious abuse online and was targeted by protesters at events.<\/p>\n
Conway told the commission: \u201cI think that idea of anti-Zionism is, in fact, a genocidal impulse.\u201d<\/p>\n
She also testified: \u201cI think it\u2019s really important to say that I support Israel\u2019s right to exist, I don\u2019t support all of the Israeli government\u2019s ways of prosecuting the war.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want there to be peace, I want there to be a two-state solution \u2026 but unfortunately \u2026 at this present time, we\u2019re not living in the land of unicorns and rainbows.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moshe described the backlash he faced for being a Zionist as completely unrelated to the reality of his associations with Israel.<\/p>\n
As well as being publicly denounced and dumped by his former band, Moshe and his wife faced a torrent of online abuse and the targeting and boycotting of the business they ran together, which was ultimately forced to relocate.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne version of Zionism, or the one I subscribe to \u2026 is that Jews deserve a home in some part of their ancestral homeland,\u201d Moshe said.<\/p>\n
Moshe said he was all but abandoned by others in the music industry, including losing performance opportunities, and having other musicians decline to collaborate on projects.<\/p>\n
The commission opened its second week of public hearings on Monday examining different definitions of antisemitism.<\/p>\n