More than 50 celebrities as well as prominent public figures have expressed support and praise over Barcelona’s recent suspension of ties with Israel. Among the supporters are some of the biggest Hollywood stars like Mark Ruffalo, Viggo Mortensen and Susan Sarandon as well as Noble Prize winners Mairead Maguire, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel and Jody Williams and this sure comes as a surprise as previous critics have been…cancelled. Amongst the celebrities were also Angela Davis and South African MP Nkosi Zwelivelile “Mandla” Mandela, the grandson of Nelson Mandela also showed support. They have all come together to sign a letter praising the Mayor’s stance for announcing the suspension as well as cancellation of Barcelona’s twinning agreement with Tel Aviv.
All these prominent figures outlined important points in the letter wherein they actively criticized governments for reacting to Israel’s ongoing violation of Palestinian rights “with empty gestures”. The letter also mentions how the mayor’s stance “reminds us of the courageous city councils that pioneered cutting links with apartheid South Africa in the past”. You can read through the fully published letter on the official page of artists of Palestine which also includes the complete list of all the celebrities and public figures who signed the letter.
This is not the first time that actors and public figures joined forces against the Israeli apartheid as in 2021, under the hashtag #StandWithThe6, more than 100 artists, actors and important figures called for an immediate end to Israeli attacks on Palestinian human rights groups specifically six institutions that had been under attack.
Bringing together international voices is a powerful form of solidarity against the current Palestinian occupation and Barcelona’s recent decision seems to be the spark that will set off more support across the globe for the Palestinian state that goes beyond the signed letter.