A handful of protesters stand outside the convention center protesting the US Army sponsorship of SXSW in Austin, Texas on March 13, 2024. Photo Stephanie Tacy/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
Organizers of South by Southwest (SXSW) announced on Wednesday that it will cut ties with the US Army and weapons manufacturers for its 2025 festival after more than 80 musicians and bands pulled out of this year’s event in March in protest of the US Army’s sponsorship of the event and its relationship with Israel during the ongoing war with Hamas in Gaza.
Leaders of the annual arts and technology festival — which is held in Austin, Texas, and took place this year from March 8-16 — released a statement about the decision on its website. “After careful consideration, we are revising our sponsorship models,” they explained. “As a result, the US Army, and companies who engage in weapons manufacturing, will not be sponsors of SXSW 2025.”
Over 80 musical acts dropped out of the SXSW 2024 festival in March “in solidarity with Palestine,” according to the Austin for Palestine coalition. They boycotted the festival because of its partnership with the US military and weapons manufacturing companies that, the group claims, has supplied weapons used by Israel against Palestinians. The US Army was a “super sponsor” of SXSW 2024 while the Defense Department, and the defense contractors RTX (formerly Raytheon), Collins Aerospace, and BAE systems were all sponsors of the festival.
The performers who pulled out of SXSW 2024 included the Ireland-based rap trio Kneecap, British band Lambrini Girls, American punk band Scowl, Brooklyn-based artist Okay Shalom, North Carolina-based singer-songwriter Eliza McLamb, Chicago-based musician Squirrel Flower, Brooklyn-based emo band Proper, and the Los Angeles-based indie band Mamalarky.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott reacted to the bands and musicians who decided to boycott SXSW 2024 because of the US Army’s sponsorship by telling them, “Don’t come back.”
“Austin remains the HQ for the Army Futures Command,” he wrote on social media in March. “San Antonio is Military City USA. We are proud of the US military in Texas. If you don’t like it, don’t come here.”
SXSW tried to distance itself from Abbott’s response by releasing its own statement that said, “SXSW does not agree with Governor Abbott.”
“We are an organization that welcomes diverse viewpoints,” the statement noted. “Music is the soul of SXSW, and it has long been our legacy. We fully respect the decision these artists made to exercise their right to free speech. Across the globe, we are witnessing unspeakable tragedies, the rise of repressive regimes, and the increasing spread of violent conflict. It’s more crucial than ever that we come together to solve these greater humanitarian issues.”
Festival organizers also explained its partnership with defense contractors. They said that the defense industry “has historically been a proving ground for many of the systems we rely on today. These institutions are often leaders in emerging technologies, and we believe it’s better to understand how their approach will impact our lives.”
“The Army’s sponsorship is part of our commitment to bring forward ideas that shape our world,” they added. “In regard to Collins Aerospace, they participated this year as a sponsor of two SXSW Pitch categories, giving entrepreneurs visibility and funding for potentially game-changing work.”
“We have and will continue to support human rights for all. The situation in the Middle East is tragic, and it illuminates the heightened importance of standing together against injustice.”
Next year’s SXSW will take place in Austin from March 7-15, 2025, and a new SXSW London will be introduced in June 2025.
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