Frankfurt bans performance by Pink Floyd co-founder Waters

After the argument about his planned concert in Frankfurt, Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters, who was controversial because of allegations of anti-Semitism, accused the city of an attack on artistic freedom. “Politicians have no right to intimidate and bully artists and their fans with performance bans,” said the singer.

At the instigation of the Frankfurt magistrate and the state of Hesse, the trade fair company had the concert organizer of the 79-year-old send a letter of termination for his performance on May 28th. Waters reiterated his intention to enforce his appearance with a restraining order if necessary. “I am fighting for all of our human rights, including the right to freedom of speech. We are on the road to Frankfurt. Frankfurt, we are coming!”

“Attack on Artistic Freedom”

“The attempts by Frankfurt politicians to cancel are an attack on artistic freedom as a whole,” said Waters. “The decision-makers in Frankfurt know that they are on the wrong side of the law and are completely isolated.”

On the other hand, he called the decision of the city of Munich “good news for freedom of expression in Germany”. The city council had decided about a week ago not to ban the 79-year-old’s concert on May 21 in the Olympic Hall – albeit with gnashing of teeth. An extraordinary termination of the contract is not possible for legal reasons, according to the reasoning. “I don’t want him here and we have to endure it now,” said Mayor Dieter Reiter.

Pig Balloon with Star of David

The city had been criticized for this decision, including by Israel’s ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor. He pointed out that Waters had released a pig-shaped balloon with a Star of David on it at concerts. “Anyone who paints a Star of David on a pig and shoots it is an anti-Semite,” he wrote on Twitter. “Organizers should cancel the concerts of this misanthrope.”