Bob Vylan rapper will not be prosecuted over 'death to the IDF' chant

https://news.sky.com/story/bob-vylan-rapper-will-not-be-prosecuted-over-death-to-the-idf-chant-13487102

The rapper in punk duo Bob Vylan will not face further action over his "death death to the IDF" chants at Glastonbury Festival, police have said.

Rapper Bobby Vylan, real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster led crowds on the festival's West Holts Stage in the chants about the Israel Defence Forces during the group's performance in June.

Avon and Somerset Police said a criminal investigation was under way shortly afterwards, with a senior detective appointed to lead the investigation.

311 points · 40 comments · view on lemmy.world

40 Comments

mrdown@lemmy.world · 77 pts · 232d (10 replies)

Death death to the idf

Keeponstalin@lemmy.world · 46 pts · 232d

DEATH DEATH TO THE IDF

PP_BOY_@lemmy.world · -31 pts · 232d (8 replies)

Wow okay folx looks like Hitler survived and posts on Lemmy now. Don't you know Germany killed six TRILLION Jews like 80 years ago?

sigh this is what happens when we defund public education

mrdown@lemmy.world · 30 pts · 232d (1 reply)

It is perfectly legal and moral to kill occupiers in the battle field who are currently comiting genocide. There is also muslims in the idf so it is not about genociding jews again

Siegfried@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 231d

I think he was being sarcastic

recentSlinky@lemmy.ca · 23 pts · 232d (5 replies)

Who said anything about jews? They said idf. A known terroristic organisation. Just because it's under a Jewish state doesn't mean you should automatically associate them with all jews. That's racist/antisemitic/discriminatory/etc. Do you also associate all Muslims with isis? All Americans with ice? That's a messed up way to think. A small group's action doesn't represent everyone related to them. It only represent that group. And the idf is currently committing genocide.

Also, calling for the death of a group is not the same as the death of the people. The idf should be dismantled and everyone involved and complicit should be prosecuted. So yes, death to the idf.

Associating the action of the government of Israel to the jewish people is the most antisemitic thing people can do right now. And the fact that government is doing most of that should enrage you the most for flaring up that hate.

PP_BOY_@lemmy.world · -11 pts · 232d (4 replies)

Umm yikes wow criticizing israel means criticizing Jews worldwide, Nazi. Didn't Fox News ever tell you that?

biggeoff@sh.itjust.works · 13 pts · 232d

Poe's law strikes again

ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 9 pts · 232d

Listen I know it doesn't mean much but for what it's worth I'm sorry the entirety of lemmy is (evidentially) too fucking stupid to feel the searing sarcasm of your comments here today. Consider this a formal apology on behalf of my "contemporaries."

michaelalf@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 231d

Downvote farming I see...

recentSlinky@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 232d
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gasgiant@lemmy.ml · 68 pts · 232d (3 replies)

What I love is the wording of this. They said the case wasn't moving forwards because of a "lack of evidence". Not that there was no crime committed.

The whole thing was filmed and broadcast on TV. Exactly what extra evidence was needed to bring this to court?

Not a crime and should never have been treated as one. Complete waste of time and money.

chillhelm@lemmy.world · 10 pts · 232d (1 reply)

Not familiar with the specific law in question, but for a lot of laws intent and knowledge at the time of crime matter. Eg the difference between manslaughter and murder is a difference in attitude.

I could plausibly see that in this case there is not enough evidence to determine what the mind set was, while the physical action still undoubtedly took place.

Eg in Germany showing the Nazi salute or displaying a swastika are illegal, except for artistic or educational purposes. A case could be constructed in which a defendants intent when showing either the gesture or the symbol could not be clearly deduced. This not enough evidence exists wether a crime was committed, even though the physical action that would constitute the crime undoubtedly happened.

Could be a similar thing is at play here.

wewbull@feddit.uk · 12 pts · 231d

Maybe, but I think the intent was quite clear here. Political statement of contempt towards the IDF. There was no sarcasm or irony. It wasn't part of a song. He just led the crowd in a chant.

phutatorius@lemmy.zip · 7 pts · 231d

They said the case wasn’t moving forwards because of a “lack of evidence”. Not that there was no crime committed.

Yeah, as you pointed out, the chant was done in a public place. So "lack of evidence" is a prosecutorial euphemism for "we have no case."

Ilixtze@lemmy.ml · 19 pts · 231d

Death to the IDF 🎶

Medic8teMe@lemmy.ca · 17 pts · 230d

Bob Vylan is Punk! Death to the idf

ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 15 pts · 232d (5 replies)

Me: Prosecute? Speech? You can't, get fucked.

Glastonbury

Oh that sounds bri*ish as hell, makes sense, didn't have a chant starting loicense.

chatokun@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 12 pts · 231d (3 replies)

Ex police officer arrested (though not prosecuted, still held for more than a month) because he quoted Trump after Charlie Kirk got involved with a projectile.

https://www.thefire.org/news/he-spent-37-days-jail-facebook-post-now-fire-has-his-back

(First link when I googled, know nothing of the site or org)

ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 0 pts · 231d (2 replies)

At least in the US, that is illegal to do. Now good luck prosecuting that until a lot of police reform happens because that's a whole issue as well, but that is illegal. Over there he'd be convicted and sentenced on top of being held.

phutatorius@lemmy.zip · 1 pts · 231d (1 reply)

Over there he’d be convicted and sentenced on top of being held.

I'm "over there" and no, the chance of being convicted of that act here is almost nil.

ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 2 pts · 231d

And yet, it happens.

wewbull@feddit.uk · 4 pts · 231d

Glastonbury is our (bi?)annual Woodstock-like music festival.

not_that_guy05@lemmy.world · 15 pts · 232d (2 replies)

Why would they prosecute him for a change? WTF is happening with the world.

a_non_monotonic_function@lemmy.world · 16 pts · 232d

It is illegal to hurt a right winger's feelings.

ameancow@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 232d
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theuniqueone@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 5 pts · 232d

Good obvious right choice for ounce.

aesviation@lemmings.world · 4 pts · 231d (11 replies)

Any reason why this group of people gets so much more protection than others?

We can criticize just about anyone, but when it comes to Jews it's off-limits.

I think that's kind of unfair and bullshit. They shouldn't have this power over us.

mrdown@lemmy.world · 33 pts · 231d

It's not about protecting jews it is about protecting zionists. There are anti israel jews that are forcefully arrested

aesviation@lemmings.world · 26 pts · 231d (2 replies)

Got this lovely message shortly after making this comment:

jordanlund@lemmy.world MOD · 8 pts · 230d

Make sure you report that PM.

Formfiller@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 231d

What the?

Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world · 16 pts · 230d

No. This is about the Israeli Defense Force.

jordanlund@lemmy.world · 14 pts · 230d (4 replies)

Because 6 million of them were exterminated in WWII and they have faced centuries of blood libel and hatred.

Don't confuse hating what Israel is doing with attacking "the Jews". Totally different topic.

Texas_Hangover@lemmy.radio · 1 pts · 230d

They do seem to keep pissing people off...

aesviation@lemmings.world · -3 pts · 230d (2 replies)

But it's okay to say christianity is a death cult?

Also, I disagree that Jews are immune to criticism for the reasons you stated. Literally every group of people has faced persecution throughout history, including christians. That doesn't mean we can't criticize them.

Unfortunately, you're probably going to ban me just because of my previous passage, proving my point.

bluesheep@sh.itjust.works · 7 pts · 230d

Nobody should be immune to criticism. But you should criticise people for their actions, not their being. I hate the Israeli state, not because they're Jewish, but because of their actions in gaza.

Unfortunately, you're probably going to ban me just because of my previous passage, proving my point.

Oh stop predicting a not yet existing victim state.

jordanlund@lemmy.world MOD · 6 pts · 230d

Every time you use "the Jews" as a pejorative makes you look more and more like a Nazi and brings you one step closer to a ban. This is NOT a Nazi bar:

Feel free to criticize Zionists and Israeli war crimes all you want, but if you can't (or won't) separate those actions from the Jewish people themselves you can GTFO.

MashedTech@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 231d

I agree with you

xc2215x@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 232d

Good to see for Bob.

TigerAce@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 2 pts · 228d

There's a thing called freedom of speech, not freedom of warcrimes. Death to the IDF!

Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 230d

Now will BA pay Louis Theroux for his podcast?