ReutersWhen fans saw that rapper Macklemore canceled an upcoming show, some of them thought it was in solidarity with Gaza.
But that’s not the case. The show was in Dubai, which he canceled due to the war in Sudan that has killed tens of thousands, starved millions and triggered a humanitarian disaster.
The charming Gulf city of Dubai is the largest city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which is widely accused of funding the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), one of Sudan’s warring sides.
‘Sudan’s crisis is catastrophic’ McLemore posted on Instagram on Monday.. Some food security experts estimate that as many as 2.5 million people could die from hunger and disease by October.
“I have to ask myself, what is my intention as an artist?” continued the rapper, who rose to fame with 2012’s classic Thrift Shop.
“If I take money,” Macklemore said, “even though I know it’s not in my spirit, what’s the difference between me and the politicians I’ve been actively protesting against?”
His moral stance has propelled a brutal conflict — which has attracted far less global attention than Ukraine or Gaza — into popular culture, and activists hope other artists will follow suit.
“It’s huge,” said one activist in London who has been campaigning for a ceasefire. “In the comments, a lot of people said, ‘Oh my God, what happened to Sudan?’
“I think it’s an eye-opener for people.”
Getty ImagesMSF is fighting Sudan’s military for control of the country and has been accused of sexual violence, looting and ethnic cleansing in areas it controls.
Human Rights Watch’s report states Doctors Without Borders may have committed genocide Attacks targeting non-Arabs in the city are thought to have killed 15,000 people, but the group denies this.
Médecins Sans Frontières traces its roots to a militia known as the Janjaweed, Also accused of genocide Sudan 20 years ago – an estimated 300,000 people died.
Evidence linking the UAE to Doctors Without Borders continues to mount.
Doctors Without Borders used drones during the war, a weapons expert from Amnesty International describes ‘The same drones’ the UAE supplies to its allies Among other conflicts are Ethiopia and Yemen.
Experts also found civilian aircraft allegedly transporting weapons from the UAE to MSF, according to a U.N. report submitted to the Security Council earlier this year.
The accusations are that the UAE is trying to gain an economic foothold in the Red Sea and profit from Sudan’s resources.
MSF controls some of the most profitable gold mines in Sudan’s Darfur region.
A Swiss aid group claims Emirati Billions of dollars worth of precious metals smuggled into Africaincluding Sudan.
Before large-scale fighting broke out in the country last year, the UAE signed a $6 billion deal to build and operate ports, airports and economic zones on the country’s Red Sea coast.
The UAE government has called accusations of its involvement in Sudan’s conflict “baseless” and intended to “divert attention from the ongoing fighting and humanitarian catastrophe.”
“The UAE once again calls for an immediate ceasefire in the current conflict. All warring parties must cease fighting and strive to find a peaceful solution to the conflict through dialogue,” the UAE said in a statement to the United Nations.
McLemore said on Instagram that multiple groups have been contacting him about the crisis in Sudan for months.
A representative of Madaniya, an organization for Sudanese people living in the UK, told BBC News: “The boycott of a major artist will obviously focus people more on the Sudanese cause, which is great.
“It would be a wonderful secondary consequence if more people paid attention to the UAE’s involvement in Sudan.”
In the coming weeks, Calvin Harris will perform in Dubai Port and Sophie Ellis-Bextor will have a date at the Opera House.
Neither man responded to requests for comment.
Will a boycott change anything?
Professor Alex de Waal, a Sudan expert at Tufts University in Massachusetts, believes cultural and sports boycotts could be an effective way to target regional powers accused of fueling war.
He said the UAE and Saudi Arabia were competing for influence in Africa and were backing rival sides in Sudan. The UAE and Saudi Arabian embassies in London have not yet responded to the BBC’s requests for comment.
De Waal taught firmly that the economic power of Arab rivals was so great that no one could possibly sanction them and said any such measures would be difficult to implement.
He added that this would not be a priority for many Western countries, which are preoccupied with the Israel-Gaza war and tensions with Iran.
But he also said the UAE and Saudi Arabia were very concerned about their reputation on the international stage.
“It’s more important for cultural figures and sports figures to say ‘we’re not going there’ than the threat of trade sanctions or economic penalties.
“Interestingly, I think [threat to them] Soft power is much stronger and has much greater potential than hard power.
Dr. Christopher Murphy, an expert on East African finance at Chapman University in California, pointed out Protests against apartheid in South Africa Ultimately “rewriting political science and international relations.”
She explained: “The boycott was the result of a large number of public and celebrity [organising] And to raise awareness of the issue, enough people are pushing their governments.
“So that could happen,” she added. “What is the difference between the Macklemore Boycott and the South African Boycott?”
Activists are still a long way from achieving a boycott of this scale, but they hope momentum will build after McLemore’s move.
Representatives of Madaniya said the warring generals were trying to destroy the fabric of Sudanese society. But that doesn’t stop activists. “There is always hope for the Sudanese people.”
Some may already be following in McLemore’s footsteps.
One commenter on his post said they had been invited to speak at a conference in the UAE, but now said: “Your post encouraged me to do more research, so I decided to decline the invitation.”
