Florida Politician Gives Lorde Flak Over Israel Cancellation

Rich Fury / Getty Images – Lorde
Lorde plays iHeart Radio Secret Sessions by AT&T at the Houdini Estate in Los Angeles Aug. 29.

Lorde is taking heat from a Florida politician who is calling for her April 11-12 shows to be called off after the artist canceled her scheduled performance in Israel.

Randy Fine of the Florida House of Representatives sent letters to the Miami Sports & Exhibition Authority Feb. 8 demanding the pop singer’s concerts be called off in accordance with Florida law prohibiting government business worth more than $1 million with any organization boycotting Israel.

In a statement Fine calls Lorde’s actions “anti-Semitism” and “bigotry” and says that her decision to cancel the show was an effort to “join the anti-Israel BDS Movement.”

The comments on Fine’s Facebook page contained a wide range of sentiments, from support to open hatred, though Fine said many anti-Semitic comments have since been removed.

“I’ll say it again. To equate disagreement and boycotting of Israel as anti-semitism is false equivalency,” one constituent wrote. “Focus on taking care of us … instead of punishing people for exercising their right to free speech. Focus on the things that matter, like the sewage issue, and our roads, and our schools.”

Lorde has already received backlash for her decision to back out of a June 5 performance in Tel Aviv, and three of her fans are suing the authors of an open letter that appeared to have influenced the artist to cancel the show.

At press time Lorde was still scheduled to play Amalie Arena in Tampa April 11 and AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami April 12. Both shows feature Mitski and Run The Jewels.