#and even less kindly to people who misrepresent link content to bolster their bullying

[maryellencarter]

This is a lie. The BDS website linked is not calling for a boycott of Eurovision.

(Before proceeding, I'm just going to note that I have never listened to a Eurovision song in my life. I don't have the auditory processing ability to enjoy most music more complex than acoustic folk. So please leave your "oh you're just saying that so you don't have to give up something you like" at the door.)

The linked website stresses repeatedly that the boycotts BDS calls for must be targeted and practical. For instance, they mention they are not calling for a boycott of Intel despite its support for Israel's current occupation policies, because Intel has too much of a monopoly on the computer chip business and not enough people are reasonably able to boycott it to make a difference.

Specifically, here is the page where they list what companies they are calling for boycotts of, which OP helpfully didn't link directly to. :P At this writing, the full list is:

* Hewlett Packard

* Siemens

* AXA insurance

* Puma, a sportswear manufacturer

* Israeli-grown fruits and vegetables

* SodaStream

* Ahava cosmetics

* Sabra hummus

And here is their guide for how to run a boycott of an organization complicit in Israel's treatment of Palestine. It's actually a great read: it emphasizes that the point of the boycotts they're calling for isn't "individual people do not engage", it's "actively campaign to decision-makers and the general public on specific, limited choices they can make to improve the situation slightly". Examples given are academics refusing to collaborate with Israeli scholars, sports teams refusing to play against Israeli teams, and event organizers refusing to invite Israeli performers.

As I understand it, the stated rationale for Tumblr's "Eurovision boycott" (which I've seen reblogged by an alarming number of people I thought had good sense) is that Eurovision has refused to disinvite Israel from the contest. Suggested actions I've seen are all over the map, from "don't give Israel's contest entry video views" to "harass and report the singer on other music platforms" to this post's across-the-board "ignore Eurovision completely".

As mentioned above, I don't know a damn thing about how Eurovision works. I don't know if disinviting a country that's already submitted their contest video is even allowed in their bylaws. I'm not going to go research that, though, because it isn't my point.

My point is: there's no universe in which "do not talk about Eurovision" results in "Eurovision disinvites Israel for next year" or whatever the practicable goal would be on that front. There simply aren't enough active Tumblr users to make a dent. ("Talk incessantly about Eurovision refusing to disinvite Israel" would at least have a chance of reaching fresh ears.)

No. The goal that "do not talk about Eurovision" will reach, the only goal it is actually capable of achieving, is "Every self-righteous social justice bully looking for a target on this website stalks the Eurovision tag and harasses individual posters".

btw! I was made aware that many people don't know that we're boycotting Eurovision this year, so.

we are boycotting Eurovision, as per BDS guidelines.

don't watch the stream, don't engage with the videos, don't post it about it on social media using hashtags that are going to trend.