UK rock legend Paul Weller, the veteran solo artist who previously led the Jam and the Style Council, is taking legal action against the accounting firm of Harris And Trotter. As Sky News reports, that firm worked with Weller for three decades. According to a legal letter, the firm told Weller in March that their accountants and tax advisers would no longer work with him or his companies because Weller said that Israel was committing genocide against the Palestinian people. In response, Weller is filing a claim against the firm, stating that it is discriminating against his legally protected philosophical beliefs.
In the legal letter, Paul Weller's lawyers reportedly include a WhatsApp message that Weller got from a partner at Harris And Trotter. Here's what that message allegedly said
It's well known what your political views are in relation to Israel, the Palestinians and Gaza, but we as a firm are offended at the assertions that Israel is committing any type of genocide.
Everyone is entitled to their own views, but you are alleging such anti-Israel views that we as a firm with Jewish roots and many Jewish partners are not prepared to work with someone who holds these views.
Weller responds:
I’ve always spoken out against injustice, whether it’s apartheid, ethnic cleansing, or genocide. What’s happening to the Palestinian people in Gaza is a humanitarian catastrophe.
I believe they have the right to self-determination, dignity, and protection under international law, and I believe Israel is committing genocide against them. That must be called out.
Silencing those who speak this truth is not just censorship -- it’s complicity.
I’m taking legal action not just for myself, but to help ensure that others are not similarly punished for expressing their beliefs about the rights of the Palestinian people.
Weller further pledges to donate any money he wins in the lawsuit to humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza. Also, Weller will headline a sold-out Gaza benefit at London's Troxy in October.
