Jewish Groups Organize ‘J Pride’ Celebrations After San Diego Pride Refuses to Drop Anti-Israel Singer Kehlani

Local Jewish organizations in San Diego, California, have together organized a weekend of LGBTQ+ celebrations the same weekend as the San Diego Pride Festival after festival organizers ignored their requests to drop R&B singer Kehlani as the headlining performer due to safety concerns surrounding her anti-Israel comments.

The J Pride weekend of events is being hosted by the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center (LFJCC) Jacobs Family Campus and is open to everyone.

“At a time when hate and hostility feel louder than ever, we are choosing something different,” LFJCC said on its website. “We are choosing to lead with PRIDE, with compassion, and with unity. Rather than be defined by exclusion or division, our Jewish community across San Diego is coming together to create something new. A space that uplifts LGBTQ+ Jews and our allies. A space filled with joy, celebration, and connection. A space where everyone can feel seen, safe, and proud. This is not just a reaction — it’s a declaration.”

Kehlani has been a vocal supporter of a “free Palestine” and highly critical of Israel’s military actions in the Gaza Strip during the Israel-Hamas war. In May, the Grammy-nominated singer from Oakland, Calif., said, “F— Israel, f— Zionism.” Last year,  she released a music video that opens with the phrase “Long live the intifada,” referencing violent Palestinian uprisings against Israel and the Jewish community. She has accused Israel of genocide, and in one Instagram post, she wrote: “Dismantle Israel. Eradicate Zionism.” She also posted an image online that called for Israel to be removed from the map and replaced with “Palestine.”

The premier sponsor of J Pride is Jamul Casino and Resort, which donated $10,000 to support the event and withdraw participation in San Diego Pride due to the Kehlani controversy, according to East County Magazine. The casino and resort said in a statement that it will honor its financial commitments to the San Diego Pride Festival but will not have a physical presence at the annual event.

“Given the complexity and sensitivity of this situation involving free expression, political symbolism and community inclusion, Jamul Casino Resort’s position is one that prioritizes its firm commitment to core values such as artistic freedom, equality, diversity and genuine respect for community concerns,” resort spokesperson Kirvin Doak said in a statement cited by the magazine. “As an organization rooted in LGBTQ2S+ advocacy, we do not condone hate speech or violence of any kind. Further, we will not be participating in the Pride Parade and those funds will be distributed to the J Pride Festival.”

The San Diego Pride Festival is set to take place July 19-20 at Marston Point in Balboa Park. Eight San Diego-based Jewish groups and synagogues have already withdrawn participation from the festival because of Kehlani’s inclusion.

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria will limit his participation in the festival in light of Kehlani’s involvement. He made the decision due to “regrettable and controversial rhetoric on social media about the Jewish community,” he explained in a letter to San Diego Pride leaders that was obtained by the San Diego Union-Tribune. Gloria will attend and walk in the parade on July 19 but not participate in the rest of the festival, according to his office.

The festival’s volunteer director of medical operations and assistant director of medical operations, both of whom are Jewish, said they were also stepping away from participating in the event. Others who have pulled their support for the festival include UC San Diego, UC San Diego Health, Meals on Wheels and Mamas Kitchen San Diego, among many others.

In May, nearly three dozen Jewish organizations released a statement urging festival organizers to reconsider having Kehlani perform at the event.

In late June, the Antisemitism Task Force of San Diego at StandWithUs launched a campaign called “Pride, not Prejudice” to pressure San Diego Pride organizers to remove Kehlani from the lineup of performers. Kehlani’s “hateful rhetoric” against Israel and Zionism “glorifies violence against Jews, and alienates Jewish LGBTQ+ participants, directly contradicting the values of inclusivity, respect, and safety that Pride events are meant to uphold,” the task force argued.

“When progressive spaces tolerate antisemitism or excuse it under the guise of anti-Zionism, they send a clear message that Jews are only welcome if they deny their identity,” Task Force Director Liat Cohen-Reeis said in a statement shared with The Algemeiner. “By booking Kehlani, Pride organizers are sending a clear message that Jews can join the festival if they leave their identity at home.”

San Diego Human Relations Commission Chair Nicole Murray Ramirez, who helped cofound San Diego Pride in 1974, told the Bay Area Reporter she will not attend the festival this year and is extremely upset with festival organizers for inviting Kehlani to perform.

“The Pride board is out of touch,” she told the local publication. “I am absolutely shocked, dismayed, and so disappointed. The Jewish community has always had our backs. I’m a Latino Catholic, but when this came out and [Kehlani] was booked, I wasn’t the only one shocked at the rhetoric she gave and her statements. This is about hate speech.”

“This is not about the Middle East,” she added. “This is about an entertainer who espouses hate, and calls for the end of a people.”

Kehlani insisted she is not antisemitic in an Instagram video uploaded in late April. “I am not antisemitic nor anti-Jew, I am anti-genocide,” she claimed. “I am anti the actions of the Israeli government, I am anti-an extermination of an entire people. I am anti the bombing of innocent children, men, women — that’s what I’m anti.”

Kehlani was scheduled to perform at a concert in New York City in June, but it was canceled after organizers faced pressure from Israel supporters, including New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Cornell University also canceled a performance by Kehlani, and the singer was set to headline San Francisco’s SoSF Pride festival in late June, but she pulled out of the lineup.

San Diego Pride organizers have rejected demands to have Kehlani removed from the event and released a statement in response.

“San Diego Pride identified headliners who are Grammy-level, queer artists to come into a space dedicated to centering and celebrating queer voices, queer identities, and queer joy,” said a spokesperson. “The organization has a zero-tolerance policy for hate speech. At the same time, San Diego Pride is committed to ensuring a space for dissenting voices — particularly queer voices of color — at a time when the federal government is actively silencing those same voices.”

The post Jewish Groups Organize ‘J Pride’ Celebrations After San Diego Pride Refuses to Drop Anti-Israel Singer Kehlani first appeared on Algemeiner.com.