As activists called out for the cancelation of a concert as a sign of solidarity for detained women’s rights activists and victims from the war on Yemen, Mariah Carey made her live debut in Saudi Arabia on Thursday, January 31st.
Human rights organization, such as the nonprofit Human Rights Watch, have been documenting since last year the amount of vocal, women’s rights activists have been detained and exiled, according to Rolling Stone. Some even report that the detained activists have been tortured while in prison. Just this week, the brother of detained activist Loujain al-Hathloul reported of the alleged abuse his sister has endured, stating, she’s been “regularly whipped, beaten, electrocuted, and sexually harassed in a basement she called the ‘place of terror.”
The brother later went on to question Mariah Carey, saying, “Now that I told you the story of my sister, will Mariah Carey call for her release on stage? Will my voice be heard?” There were no reports that Mariah Carey recognized the situation at her concert, but her publicist responded to the backlash in a statement to The Associated Press. “As the first female international artist to perform in Saudi Arabia, Mariah recognizes the cultural significance of this event and will continue to support global efforts towards equality for all.”
She went on to continue with, “[When] presented with the offer to perform for an international and mixed gender audience in Saudi Arabia, Mariah accepted the opportunity as a positive step towards the dissolution of gender segregation.” These opportunities have only become a recent step forward since Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman began straying away from the ultra-conservative restriction on entertainment and pop culture. Mariah Carey isn’t the only artist to be granted permission to perform or receive this backlash, back in December, the Black Eyed Peas, Enrique Iglesias and David Guetta received the same public criticism as they performed at a car race in Riyadh.
Other activists continue to believe the cultural push in accepting entertainment and pop culture is being used as a distraction for the country’s continued human rights violations and murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. There’s no knowing of what will happen next, but this public outcry might reach the attention of artists internationally to question their stance on performing in Saudi Arabia.
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