Jewish musician appeals ruling on concert canceled over his ‘Zionist views’

Jewish musician Mikey Pauker is appealing a federal court ruling that dismissed his discrimination lawsuit after a California retreat center, Harbin Hot Springs, canceled his Chanukah concert due to concerns about his support for Israel. Pauker's attorneys filed their opening brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on August 14, arguing that the district court erred in finding Harbin not liable for responding to discriminatory customer complaints. The cancellation stemmed from a Facebook post by Pauker expressing solidarity with Israel after the October 7, 2023, attacks, leading to accusations of him playing “genocide music.” Matthew Mainen, litigation counsel at the National Jewish Advocacy Center, stated, “Mikey needs to demonstrate three things: Zionism is part of his Jewish identity, the cancellation campaign against him was anti-Jewish and businesses cannot cater to such customer bigotry.” Pauker emphasized, “For many Jews, Zionism is inseparable from our Judaism,” and that discrimination based on this relationship should not be dismissed as merely “political.”