There is something really beautiful about witnessing generosity in excess. Last night, at Together for Palestine—a fundraising concert designed to raise money for charities on the frontlines in Gaza—so many musicians, speakers, journalists, politicians, actors, and activists gave their time to put their voice to the Palestinian cause. So many, in fact, that the show stretched to four-and-a-half hours in length. 6:30pm through to an 11 o’clock curfew, with 12,000 people in the room—and thousands more at home—watching too.
Organized by Brian Eno, the list of attendees he helped gather was gigantic, dozens upon dozens. Musicians like James Blake, Sampha, Neneh Cherry, Damon Albarn, King Krule, Saint Levant, Jamie xx, Rachel Chinouriri, Cat Burns and Palestinian star Nai Barahouti performed sets, while other recognizable faces—Pink Pantheress, Nicola Coughlan, Florence Pugh, Riz Ahmed, Amelia Dimoldenberg, the list goes on—presented in between.
Coughlan used her time to call out inaction by the most powerful: “I’m going to use this moment to say there are many artists that I love, and I know you love, that have hundreds of millions of followers, and they’re saying nothing in this moment,” she said. By the end of the night, nearly £1.5 million had been raised for Choose Love, an organization supporting displaced people. They, in turn, were splitting all funds raised between three different organisations helping the people of Gaza on the ground: Taawon, the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, and the Palestine Medical Relief Society.
Is it possible to stage something like this and for the mood to not be so somber? Yes. Every year, Britain uses humor as a catalyst to get audiences to donate money to good causes. We have Red Nose Day and Children in Need, once-upon-a-time splashy and starry telethons (that seem to have weaned in popularity, or maybe it just feels bigger when you’re in school here) that raise money for children in poverty globally. These shows intersplice sketch comedians and live music with cutaway clips to who your money is helping.
Together for Palestine confronted its purpose head on instead. The violence is ongoing: like with Live Aid, this wasn’t a retroactive effort to rebuild something. The point was to create noise and attention—first with Oscar-nominated actors and viral stars, and then, more importantly, with someone who knows what life is like in Gaza from first hand experience, on the very same stage.
The most powerful words came from people so angered and distraught that what left their mouth was impossible to predict. Sandwiched between celebrities was Mahmoud Sarsak, a Palestinian football player paying tribute to his friend Suleiman Obeid, a professional footballer who was shot and killed by Israeli forces while waiting for aid in the Gaza Strip last month. He’s one of more than 800 professional athletes killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023. A tribute to the journalists killed in Gaza was led by war correspondent Yara Eid, who hasn’t been allowed back into Gaza by Israel since October 7. Her own partner, also a journalist, is among the dead.
“Relinquish an inch of your privilege so that an entire people doesn’t have to lose everything.”
francesca albanese
At one point, a member of the audience fainted in the front row. A Gazan doctor left the stage, in the middle of their moment in front of thousands of people, to tend to them. It felt symbolic and selfless.
One of the early speakers was Francesca Albanese, a tentpole figure in the fight for Palestinian justice, as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Her speech with a rousing point that echoed through the rest of the evening: “Speak out at dinner tables, on the streets, online,” she said. “Relinquish an inch of your privilege so that an entire people doesn’t have to lose everything.”
For the most part, this felt like being in a room with good people, marking a moment in history. Days earlier, the United Nations had completed an inquiry into the actions of Israel in Gaza, and confirmed that, in their opinion, they were acting with genocidal intent. Together for Palestine felt like an act of mourning, but also, in some of its more jubilant moments—like a colourful, loud and moving medley of Palestinian traditional songs from London Arab Orchestra, the Juzour Dance Collective and Blur’s Damon Albarn—like an expression of a culture at risk of being overshadowed and reframed by violence committed against it. It was a reminder, and an act of reclamation too.
You can continue to donate to Together for Palestine here, and check out a collection of charity merchandise designed by the likes of Simone Rocha, Priya Ahluwalia and Zeid Hijazi here.