Mild insight: After severe criticism and police investigations into hate speech, Roger Waters changed his stage show for the performance in Frankfurt. The Pink Floyd-Co-founder appeared in the festival hall without a leather coat and armband. Because he knows the history of the hall, Waters said on Sunday evening at the beginning of his two-and-a-half-hour concert, he refrained from dressing up “as a demagogue” in the second part of his show.
During the pogrom night of 1938, more than 3,000 Jewish men were rounded up, held and mistreated in the Frankfurt Festhalle, only to be deported. Waters said he felt the suffering that befell the people of that place. He knows that many people accuse him of being an anti-Semite. And: “That’s not me,” said Waters to the cheers of many viewers. The musician also burst into tears for a short time.
Investigations on suspicion of sedition
The 79-year-old is one of the most notable supporters of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) campaign, which calls for a boycott of the State of Israel and its assets over its treatment of the Palestinians. It was also announced on Friday that the Berlin police had started investigations against Waters on suspicion of incitement to hatred.
The background is the musician’s stage clothing during his concerts on May 17th and 18th in the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Berlin. The program item has been there every evening since the tour started in July 2022: During the songs “In The Flesh” and “Run Like Hell” from the Pink Floyd album “The Wall”, Waters in a leather coat with a red armband walks on the Stage, clearly based on the SS uniforms in the Third Reich. Towards the end, he shoots into the crowd with a dummy assault rifle.
Hundreds of people had demonstrated before the concert in front of the Festhalle against Water’s performance, including Frankfurt Mayor Mike Josef (SPD). He accused Waters of spreading anti-Semitic ideas “under the guise of freedom.” At the commemoration and protest event in front of the Festhalle, representatives from politics, religious communities and civil society had previously called for resolute action against anti-Semitism, hatred and hate speech. Michaela Fuhrmann, Head of Political Relations at the Frankfurt Jewish Community, said the aim was to take a stand against anti-Semitism, against hatred of Israel and against conspiracy theories. The police spoke of around 500 participants.