#JustinDontGo

Justin Bieber, please cancel your December 5th performance in Saudi Arabia.

Don’t sell your talent to a Saudi dictator who imprisons women’s rights activists, murders journalists, and kills Yemeni children.

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The Details:

International pop star Justin Bieber is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with estimated sales of over 150 million records worldwide. Saudi Arabia’s brutal dictatorship uses the glamor of global entertainers like Bieber to hide its brutal human rights record from the world. Meanwhile, the Saudi monarchy starves Yemen’s children, imprisons and tortures women’s rights activists, and, in 2018, murdered Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Bieber has announced that he will perform at the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2021 on December 5th. “Beliebers,” human rights activists, and Khashoggi’s ex-fiancee have been reaching out to Justin Bieber with one clear ask: cancel this concert.

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Saudi Arabia's Brutal Dictatorship:

Saudi Arabia’s abysmal human rights record has been widely documented. As an absolute monarchy without any form of meaningful democratic representation, the Saudi dictatorship has a long record of silencing reformers, imprisoning human rights advocates, and shutting down the very voices that are crucial for building an open society where new ideas and innovation can thrive.

Not only that, but the Saudi government has brought misery to populations across the Middle East and North Africa. The Saudi government continues to prosecute its devastating war in Yemen, and it has staged multiple interventions against democracy in Bahrain, Egypt, Sudan, and Libya. Saudi Arabia’s brutal record has only intensified since Mohammed bin Salman became crown prince in 2017. Saudi Arabia has failed to provide any meaningful accountability for the murder of exiled Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey by Saudi government agents in October 2018.

Justin Bieber’s public image doesn’t need to be a part of Saudi Arabia’s PR machine. Instead, by refusing to perform, Bieber can make it clear that a royal family that criminalizes speech and expression cannot be a partner for celebrated performers.

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#JustinDontGo: Tell Justin Bieber to cancel his December 5th performance in Saudi Arabia.

Sources:

1. “Justin Bieber,” Wikipedia, accessed November 24, 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Bieber .

2. Cengiz, Hatice (2021). "Opinion: Please, Justin Bieber, don't perform for the regime that killed my fiancé", accessed November 24 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/11/20/justin-bieber-saudi-arabia-formula-1-jeddah-mbs-jamal-khashoggi/.