Cancer Bats apologize following performing show in boycotted German venue, Conne Island

Cancer Bats responded to online backlash after playing a show at Conne Island in Leipzig, DE on August 8th. The venue has been under boycott for over six months due to its support for Israel, among other controversial claims. The band addressed the criticism via a statement released over the weekend, acknowledging the concerns raised and stating their commitment to learning from the situation.

The statement reads: 

While we were driving back from Brutal Assault fest tonite to Germany, we saw the comments some people were leaving about our show Aug 8 in Leipzig at Conne Island. First off we want to apologize for playing a venue that would make anyone feel uncomfortable or not want to come to the show. We take it very seriously that everyone feel welcome and safe at a Cancer Bats show, that includes venue, staff, promoter or anyone connected to the show.

Secondly, its Mike and I (Liam) that run the instagram and we try to stay on top of the DMs and Comments that people leave but we miss lots of them. This isnt an excuse were just trying to be honest that we suck at social media a lot of the time. That being said we DO NOT want to be missing things like this that are important. So please reach out to us direct with any issues about venues or any concerns on any shows to batskullrecords@gmail.com (also in bio and we will pin this story)

We also want it to be clear that we do not support genocide and that we whole heartedly believe in a free Palestine. We would never knowingly work with anyone who thinks differently. Thank you and big love to everyone in the Bats World

The venue, Conne Island, also issued a statement regarding the situation and referencing their previously released statement regarding the boycott issued October 7th of last year.

The following statement was take from the venue's website: conne-island.de and Instagram.

Boycott Conne Island? – Why cancellations have been accumulating

With this text, we are reaching out to you to explain our situation as a venue – represented by the open plenum on Mondays, which makes decisions concerning Conne Island consensually. The reasons therefore are the heaps of cancellations of events and by artists, that have been reaching us since October 7th 2023. These refusals can be traced back to different calls and campaigns for boycott against us. The accusations directed at us claim that we would hold racist views, that we wouldn't allow Palestinians on our stage or our premises, that we would endorse people close to AfD and would actively recruit staff/soldiers for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Later on in this text, we will expand on how these narratives came about.

Conne Island has released just one statement shortly after October 7th, that was written on the basis of current resolutions at our venue (https://conne-island.de/news/279.html).

Fundamentally, Conne Island and the critique of antisemitism have been interrelated for more than 30 years. This resulted in our long-standing consensus: that the right for Israel to exist as the only Jewish state is indisputable. That doesn't mean that we affirm the current policies and acts of war by the current Netanyahu regime in Israel, Gaza and the Westbank. Within Conne Island, there are different positions on these topics, which is why we can't and won't formulate any geopolitical assessments in this text. On the other hand, we want to be a space in which these topics can be discussed and we can deal with different positions.

Since October 7th, more than 13 acts have cancelled their gigs at Conne Island:

– October 22nd, 2023: High Vis
– November 24th, 2023: Lust for Youth
– November 30th, 2023: Rotten Mind
– December 14th, 2023: Slow Pulp
– March 15th, 2024: Life Force
– May 29th, 2024: Pkew Pkew Pkew
– May 31st, 2024: Lovefoxy
– June 1st, 2024: Elias Mazian
– June 22nd, 2024: Byron Yeates
– June 26th, 2024: Truth Cult
– August 5th, 2024: Coffin
– October 5th, 2024: TR/ST
– October 6th, 2024: Jen Razavi
– November 23rd, 2024: The Chats

The events and main acts mentioned here are just the ones that cancelled because of the reasons mentioned above. Other events have fallen victim to a so-called ‚silent boycott (cancellations or relocation due to supposed other reasons, absent requests for gigs at Conne Island and unanswered E-Mails from artists and agencies). We can only assume how many shows haven't taken place at our venue. Also, we can only presume how many guests, work assignments – and simply revenue – have been consequently lost. But we can say one thing for sure: It's been taking a toll on us, not just financially.

Often, acts or agencies cancel their gigs without giving us a chance of communication. There is a trend towards cancellations without comments or reasons. Simultaneously, a climate has been produced that forces people into taking a stance to highly complex processes. The valuable path of discourse towards finding a position is bypassed and complex contexts are presented in a simplified way so that they fit into one's own (authoritarian) argumentation structure. We are of the opinion that this behavior does little to help people who suffer from any form of oppression, but serves above all the self-dramatization of (internet) activists. The boycott procedure always remains the same: as soon as an act appears in our lineups, they are contacted (usually via social media) and 'informed' on the aforementioned narratives. The messages that circulate are usually simply copied and pasted and contain various false statements as well as apparent source references, which, however, usually refer to the original boycott pages that reflect the same lies. This is accompanied by more or less subtle intimidation and threats, saying the acts will have to expect cancellations at other venues if they decide to play at Conne Island after all. One artist told us about massive threats after announcing her show at our venue. Another artist had further shows on her tour cancelled after her performance at Conne Island and was removed from the line-up without further ado.

Three things in particular are used as evidence for the narrative, which we would like to look at in detail:

1. "recruting for IDF"

The text in question is an opinion piece published by a private individual in our news flyer CEEIEH in March 2015 (i.e. over nine years ago!). In it, the person describes their stay in Israel with the Sar-El volunteer service. This text is reinterpreted by boycott supporters as a recruitment attempt by Conne Island. It should be noted that although the CEEIEH is a Conne Island medium, it does not represent the opinion of Conne Island or the plenum. Rather, there should also be room for contributions to the discussion. This was also the case here, where a criticism of the aforementioned text was published in the subsequent issue (https://conne-island.de/nf/222/20.html).

2. „racist towards Palestinians"

Boycott supporters accuse Conne Island of behaving in a racist manner towards Palestinians, refusing them entry or canceling "pro-Palestinian" acts. These allegations often refer to the 'Kufiyah ban' (see point 3) or are simply made up. We do not deny acccess to anyone on the basis of origin, religion or ethnicity. We also feature artists who are Palestinian themselves or who are in solidarity with them.

3. The ‚Kufiyah ban'

The fact that wearing the kufiyah (also known as 'pali scarf') is not permitted on our premises has already led to accusations of anti-Muslim, anti-Arab or anti-Palestinian racism in the past. In our opinion, the so-called 'pali scarf' is associated with exclusion, violence and discrimination in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which is why it has not been allowed at Conne Island for many years. An exemplary classification of such accusations and our policy in German and English can be found here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C9PQAKKsAaK/

4. Affirmation of AfD

Last but not least, Conne Island has repeatedly been accused of sympathizing with the AfD party. This is still being justified in a makeshift manner with a lecture by Thomas Maul on May 28th, 2018. Two weeks before the event, the speaker referred positively to a statement by an AfD member of parliament. This was also received very critically at Conne Island, and the event was held despite internal disagreement. The context can be found here: https://conne-island.de/nf/251/4.html. Internal criticism was formulated in the CEEIEH, for example: https://conne-island.de/nf/250/3.html. Since its founding, Conne Island has been a left-wing and anti-fascist cultural center and has been trying to form a counterpoint to rampant racism, nationalism and right-wing structures (especially in East Germany). The fact that a controversial event that took place here more than six years ago is now supposed to negate all these efforts leaves us perplexed.

To put it bluntly: Conne Island has a clear anti-fascist, anti-racist and anti-sexist position and we have been active in these areas for three decades now. In view of the elections in Saxony in September, it is to be feared that the AfD will become the strongest party. This would mean that further obstacles would be placed in our way by right-wing and conservative forces. We therefor clearly distance ourselves from right-wing parties and movements.

Boycott campaigns and calls against Conne Island aim to inflict the greatest possible damage on us as a venue with political aspirations. When we are identified as a political opponent by those involved in the boycott, it isn't about argumentative debate anymore. It's about our cultural and material existence. And unfortunately, we and other venues in Germany are finding that these efforts are too often successful. We also know the artists and agencies are suffering, as their livelihoods are also threatened by the intimidation of boycott. We would like to see a change in the current discourse towards more dialog, self-reflection and mutual respect.

We decide which artists we invite on a grassroots democratic basis, taking into account the political standards mentioned above. We offer dialog to artists and agencies, even if it can be tedious, nerve-wracking and lengthy. Such constructive discussions with artists have already been held and both parties were happy to have stuck with the event afterwards. From this experience, we know that although differences remain in dialog, it is still possible to find common ground.

Further information on BDS (in German): https://conne-island.de/news/215.html