Pink said Friday that “standing up for my own people” had proven even lonelier than she had expected, as she explained why she had criticized Macklemore’s recent pro-Palestinian performance at an Ed Sheeran concert and pushed back at assumptions about her views on Israel.

“I’ve been quiet in my own words for a week, which you know isn’t like me. So here they are,” the Jewish American pop star wrote in a lengthy Instagram statement posted on the eve of Rosh Hashanah.

The controversy began September 6, when Pink shared on her Instagram story a post from the StopAntisemitism account criticizing Macklemore’s remarks during his opening set for Sheeran at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium.

“Jewish fans bought tickets to see Ed Sheeran sing last night in NJ, not to be ambushed by Macklemore’s anti-Israel propaganda,” the post read.

It accused Macklemore of turning the concert into a political event by appearing onstage in a keffiyeh, shouting “Free Palestine” and accusing Israel of genocide, adding that concertgoers deserved an apology and refunds from Sheeran.

Pink said Friday that the repost had contained language she had not written and would not necessarily have chosen herself.

“A repost isn’t a statement, and a meme isn’t a spine,” she wrote. “Social media makes all of us cheap and fast, and we all know it. But I’d rather be disagreed with for what I actually said than hated for what anybody else wrote.”

Pink, whose birth name is Alecia Beth Moore, then addressed assumptions she said had been made about her because of her Jewish identity.

“I was born a Jew. I didn’t pick it, and I’ve never hidden it,” she wrote. “And this week a whole lot of people decided what I believe without asking me, without checking a single thing I’ve ever said or done, because a repost and the word ‘Jew’ were apparently enough to fill in the rest.”

She reiterated positions she said she had held since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught on southern Israel: “Hamas is a terrorist organization. Palestinians deserve a future that honors their humanity and their aspirations. Protecting innocent life comes first, everywhere, and nobody should ever celebrate the death of a child.........

© The Times of Israel