Roger Waters, a singer for Pink Floyd who has come under significant fire over the last year following a number of antisemitism scandals, was barred from using his infamous antisemitic inflatable pig, wearing a Nazi uniform and comparing Anne Frank to Shireen Abu Akleh in his Buenos Aires concerts, according to the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) Latin America organization.
PAZP, a legal firm in Argentina, alongside the anti-discrimination prosecution office, worked together to stop Waters from using his standard antisemitic imagery on the stage.
Finally, Waters passed through Buenos Aires knowing that the laws would not allow him to put his Antisemitism on stage. The work of PAZP Lawyers and the Antidiscrimination Prosecutor, managed that he did not wear the Nazi costume, the flying pig had not not the Star of David nor… pic.twitter.com/dl2cuk15Zh
— CSW Latinoamérica (@CSWLatAm) November 23, 2023
SWC Latin America’s Director Dr. Ariel Gelbung told the Jerusalem Post: “Since we found out that he was coming to Latin America, we began to warn on social media that the region had changed since his previous visit; mostly by countries that adopted the IHRA Definition of Antisemitism and apply it alongside anti-discrimination laws.
“A legal firm denounced, together with an affidavit subscribed by myself, that if he did the same show he had been doing on tour, where he dressed as a Nazi, used the Star of David on the flying pig, and compared Abu Shakleh to Anne Frank, that it would be considered a crime. A prosecutor was present at both shows and warned the stadium and the production company that she would be attentive if Waters committed a violation of the law.
“At the same time, the DAIA, the political representation of the Jewish community in Argentina, managed to get a judge to let Waters know that he had to refrain from making antisemitic comments.
“Finally, [Waters] changed the show and only made reference to the Israeli Lobby, when he wanted to criticize the Jewish owner of a hotel who refused to receive him, causing the entire audience to insult that man. All this added to the hotels that refused to receive him because he was antisemitic.”
Waters had had multiple hotels in Argentina cancel his reservations due to the controversy, the Post reported.
Roger Waters’ history of antisemitism
Waters, who recently claimed that the Israeli narrative on Hamas’ October 7 massacring of civilians was “fishy” and called Hamas actions “legal," has a long history of antisemitism.
The singer’s antisemitic comments, actions, and artistic choices have now been the focus of two different documentaries by Campaign Against Antisemitism.