Vandals sparked outrage and international news when they placed a sticker of the Palestinian flag over the star of David necklace worn by a statue depicting the late musical star, Amy Winehouse.
Winehouse, who died in 2011, was a world-renowned British soul singer/songwriter of Jewish heritage, whose struggles with fame, drugs, and alcohol played out on the world’s stage. The songstress with the towering beehive and brow-reaching cat-eye flick would have turned 40 on Sept. 14. The statue with her likeness was unveiled in London in September 2014 on what would have been her 31st birthday.
The statue was vandalized among an international wave of protests amid the war in Gaza. The BBC reported that a spokesperson for the local Met Police said they understand this “will have caused upset to many people.”
The police force went on to recall, “We were made aware on Monday that a member of the public had placed a sticker over the Star of David necklace on the Amy Winehouse statue in the North Yard of Camden Market. This was removed immediately, and the incident was reported to the police.”
Amid an international wave of protests regarding the war in Gaza, a protester placed a Palestinian flag over the Amy Winehouse statue’s Star of David. (CYRIL VILLEMAIN/AFP via Getty Images)
“Camden Market remains first and foremost a place of diversity – a global destination that welcomes everyone,” the police force added, according to the BBC.
British singer Amy Winehouse sits with her father Mitch as they await news of her Grammy Award at The Riverside Studios for the 50th Grammy Awards ceremony on February 10, 2008 in London, England. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images for NARAS)
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They are currently making inquiries for evidence, such as security camera footage, to find who actually committed this seemingly political act of vandalism.
“Covering the Star of David, a well-known symbol of Judaism, on the statue of a British-Jewish singer, with a sticker of the Palestinian Authority flag, is antisemitic,” a spokesperson for the Campaign Against Antisemitism reportedly said of the incident. “Right now, 69% of British Jews say that they are less likely to show visible signs of their Judaism. When even a statue of a Jewish person can’t get away with it, is that any surprise?”
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By contrast, TMZ reported that Winehouse’s father and the administrator of her estate, Mitch Winehouse, told their outlet, “It’s not very nice but it was just a sticker.”
Fox News’ Stephanie Nolasco contributed to this report.
