Eurovision Is Plunged Into Crisis as Deep Political Divisions Intensify

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This year, acts include Nebulossa — a sultry Spanish queen flanked by shirtless male dancers in sparkly corsets and knee-high boots — and Baby Lasagna — Croatia’s bonkers techno banger with pirate costumes, which encapsulates Eurovision to a tee.

Twelve months ago, when Swedish music superstar Loreen triumphed to bring the show to her home city — a contest that serendipitously coincides with the 50th anniversary of ABBA winning with “Waterloo” — Eurovision felt unstoppable.

Alexander has learned the hard way that queer joy and unity — messages he has advocated for throughout his career, including a famously rousing speech at 2019’s Glastonbury festival — are in themselves divisive against a backdrop of war crimes allegations.

Not even Ireland — a country that has become known for pro-Palestinian activism, where over 400 artists signed a letter calling for a boycott, and whose entrant, Bambie Thug, recently said in an interview: “If I wasn’t in the competition, I would also be boycotting.” Iceland, too, looked like a possible holdout, but confirmed its participation on the final day of the deadline.

The lack of nations threatening to boycott reflects the geopolitical reality that many of Eurovision’s competing countries are much closer allies of Israel than Russia, including the “Big Five” — France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K. — who make the largest financial contributions each year and get an automatic pass to the final.

After qualifying for Saturday’s grand final, Ireland’s Bambie Thug claimed that they were asked to remove an Irish inscription from their costume, which translated to “ceasefire” and “freedom for Palestine.” Eurovision has a history of reprimanding pro-Palestinian sentiment: In 2019, Iceland’s broadcaster was fined after its act, Hatari, waved a Palestinian flag during the ceremony in Tel Aviv.

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