A brewery in Bristol has publicly apologised for comments by its owner which condemned the “death to the IDF” chants at Glastonbury, after being threatened by a local boycott.
In a Facebook post, Justin Hawke, founder of the Moor Beer company, condemned those who joined punk/hip hop performer Bob Vylan during his incendiary performance at Glastonbury.
“Thanks to the IDF and soldiers of all western nations who defend our way of life and protect the privileges we enjoy”, Mr Hawke wrote.
“The hypocrisy of any music fan or festival goer never ceases to perplex me. You should have been there on 7 October. Or perhaps we should have let Hamas repeat at Glastonbury? Then you’d be begging the IDF to save you.”
The Bristol Post reported that in response to Mr Hawke’s post, a number of Bristol venues, including Exchange Bristol, pledged to stop stocking Moor Beer and said they would donate £1 from every pint of the remaining stock to the Medical Aid for Palestinians charity. The paper also said that some bands who had been due to perform at the Moor Beer brewery venue had withdrawn, changing the location for their performances.
On Monday, the brewery published a statement distancing itself from Hawke’s comments.
“To be clear, Moor Beer were shocked to see Justin’s post yesterday, which he deeply regrets”, it read.
“As a small, employee-owned company, everyone, including Justin, want there to be no doubt that we do not support genocide or the atrocities taking place in the Middle East, and are deeply sorry for any offense caused.”
The statement went on to say that “Justin hasn’t been involved in the hands-on day to day operations or communications for some time.
“He will be issuing a personal apology; he is deeply sorry for the pain he has caused, both to his friends and Moor Beer.”
