{"id":225567,"date":"2025-06-30T03:04:14","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T03:04:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/225567\/"},"modified":"2025-06-30T03:04:14","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T03:04:14","slug":"this-is-about-the-genocide-in-palestine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/225567\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018This is about the genocide in Palestine\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Welsh woman who went viral on Saturday after thousands tuned in to her livestream of Kneecap\u2019s Glastonbury set<\/a> has said it was important that the band\u2019s performance was shown in its entirety to highlight the genocide in Palestine<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Helen Wilson, from Swansea, who quickly became known as \u2018Helen from Wales\u2019 on social media, decided to livestream Kneecap\u2019s Saturday performance at the festival after the BBC chose not to air the set live.<\/p>\n

\"MoglaiMoglai Bap and Mo Chara of Kneecap performing on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury. PICTURE: PA (Ben Birchall\/PA) <\/p>\n

The rappers\u2019 appearance was later made available to watch on the iPlayer service, however it was reported that the BBC had wanted to \u2018consider\u2019 the group\u2019s performance before uploading it to its on-demand service<\/a>. <\/p>\n

More: <\/b>Police assessing Kneecap and Bob Vylan Glastonbury performances<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

\"‘This<\/a>\"Tributes<\/a><\/p>\n

Kneecap rapper Liam \u00d3g \u00d3 hAnnaidh, AKA Mo Chara, has been charged with a terrorism offence for allegedly displaying a Hezbollah flag at a London gig last year. <\/p>\n

He has denied the charge, and his case is due to be heard again at Westminster Magistrates\u2019 Court on August 20.<\/p>\n

Ms Wilson told The Irish News that she felt the BBC\u2019s decision not to broadcast the performance live had been a \u201cdeliberate act of silence\u201d. <\/p>\n

\"Helen,Helen Wilson, who has been attending Glastonbury for 26 years, decided to stream Kneecap’s set on her TikTok account (@helensmashinglife). <\/p>\n

The Swansea native, who has been coming to the festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset for 26 years, was working at this year\u2019s festival<\/a> with sustainable waste management company Critical Waste. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d been thinking about it for a few days,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a big fan of Kneecap<\/a>, and I\u2019ve obviously been following what\u2019s been happening with them, and so a few days ago, I had the idea to do a live on TikTok, but at the time, I was supposed to be working a shift. <\/p>\n

\u201cLuckily my manager allowed my friend and I to go down to the Kneecap set.\u201d<\/p>\n

After starting to stream the performance on her account @helensmashinglife<\/a>, she said she realised she \u201ccouldn\u2019t stop\u201d once she became aware of how many people had tuned in \u2013 despite her phone overheating as temperatures peaked at 27 degrees. <\/p>\n

\"KneecapKneecap performing on stage at Glastonbury on Saturday. PICTURE: PA (Yui Mok\/PA) <\/p>\n

\u201cI was holding my phone in the air and there was very quickly around 7,000 people (watching),\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

The livestream accumulated over 1.8 million likes and has since been seen by thousands more as it was reshared on other platforms.<\/p>\n

Kneecap also acknowledged her efforts, describing her as a \u201clegend\u201d in a comment under her video. <\/p>\n

\u201cTickets to any show just (give us) a shout! GRMA,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n

While Ms Wilson admitted it was \u201camazing\u201d to have the band and hundreds of others reach out to her, she said that the issues of free speech and the ongoing genocide in Gaza were what was most important. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is about the genocide in Palestine \u2013 this is not even about this festival,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is about this wide issue that everybody needs to sit up and take notice of. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis festival has always stood for more than just music; I believe that Glastonbury is about freedom and a resistance, and people come to this festival who do believe that another world is possible. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t agree with artists being silenced \u2013 when institutions avoid politically outspoken artists, I think that it\u2019s up to us, the fans, to make sure their voices are still heard.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ms Wilson said that she hopes to see Kneecap in Wales soon. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf they\u2019d like to come and play in Wales, we\u2019d love to have them,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n