At the end of last year, he canceled concerts in Poland for supporting the Russian army’s invasion of Ukraine.
Berlin police announced on Friday that they are investigating Roger Waters, the former lead singer and co-founder of the rock band Pink Floyd, for hate speech. The motif is a Nazi-style uniform used by the musician in the German capital.
Berlin police spokesman Martin Halweg said in a press release. “We are investigating a suspected incitement to public hatred because clothes worn on stage could be used to glorify or justify the Nazi regime by disturbing public order,” he said. According to Halweg, the costume resembles the costumes worn by SS officers, which were intended to protect the dictator Adolf Hitler and his party.
The look is truly SS-inspired, but just as critical. It is the same outfit worn by Bob Geldof at the end of the film “The Wall” (1982), when the singer Pink (inspired by Waters) lets herself be carried away by the influence of fascism. “The Wall” is a strong condemnation of fascism.
The German and Israeli press also claimed that, during the concert, the singer displayed the names of several deceased people on a screen, including Anne Frank, the Jewish teenager who died in a Nazi concentration camp, and Shireen Abu Akleh, journalist with Palestinian and American citizenship for the Al Jazeera channel who died in an Israeli operation in May 2022.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry took the opportunity to criticize the musician, stating that he “desecrated the memory of Anne Frank and the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust”. The Israeli ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, took a position on Twitter. “Waters wants to compare Israel to the Nazis. He is one of the greatest critics of Jews of our time,” he said.
The former Pink Floyd frontman has previously been accused of anti-Jewish views. He even used an inflatable pig with a Star of David in his shows. Considered a pro-Palestinian activist, he also tends to defend boycotts of Israeli products.
After the incident, Frankfurt authorities attempted to cancel a concert by the musician scheduled for May 28, but the decision was overturned by the local court in the name of freedom of expression.
Late last year, he canceled concerts in Poland for supporting the Russian army’s invasion of Ukraine.
This is Roger Waters in Germany dressed head to toe as a NAZI officer complete with SS guards firing machine gun salvos during his concert as part of his lifelong obsession with Jews.
Totally normal. Not crazy and definitely not anti-Semitic. pic.twitter.com/NqojGTgIpF
— Ron M. (@Jewtastic) May 26, 2023
Roger Waters is under INVESTIGATION by the Berlin police after he ‘appeared on stage in a Nazi uniform’.
He’s clearly portraying Pink from The Wall (1982), famously starring Bob Geldof, descending into a drugged fascist fantasy in a film that CONDEMNES fascism. Absurd. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/Og5DouG3fL
— Joseph Attard (@josephattard02) May 26, 2023
Source: Terra
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
