Protesters from South Yorkshire sang in a Sheffield church during a “very powerful” fundraiser for Palestine on Saturday night.
The Tadhamon Singers, a group of 17 women who perform protest songs, sang to a packed crowd at Christ Church in Pitsmoor.
Silence fell in the church after a performance of ‘I Stand with You’. A standing ovation followed, where members of the choir and audience could be seen shedding tears.
Singer Carolyn Leary, 67, called the performance a mark of “respect for the people of Gaza”.
She said: “Some of it, we struggled to sing because even we were in tears. I think we make a very powerful connection of solidarity.”
The singers formed in 2018 and have performed across the country in protest against the conflict in Gaza. In 2021, they protested outside Israel-based defence contractor Elbit Systems.
Recently, the group sang in Waitrose on Ecclesall Road and temporarily closed down the city’s Barclays branch for two days.
Ms Leary said: “We’re obviously utterly committed to nonviolent protest and singing ended up being an amazing way of making connections with people.
“We’re kind of keen that we’re not just a kind of fundraiser for a good cause. We’re actually about motivating political change.”
Among the 12-song setlist was, ‘Coke Busters’, a boycott song of Coca Cola sung to the tune of Ray Parker Jr.’s ‘Ghostbusters’.
Many of its members are involved in other local choirs, such as the Sheffield Socialist Choir. They said they were drawn together as they all shared a common care for Palestine and drew inspiration from similar UK choirs.
Janet Wood, 72, the musical director of the group, said: “I think there is something about singing that just touches people’s hearts. You can march and you can wave the flags and you can talk, but there’s something about singing that gets to them on a deeper level.”
Following MP Paul Blomfield’s visit to the West Bank the group arranged their own visit, but were delayed by two years due to the pandemic.
“We just saw levels of violence by the army that I had only ever seen on video. I’d never witnessed it,” said Leary.
Following the performance, traditional Palestinian food was served while the group congregated with the audience to share stories.
The group said their support has increased since the conflict escalated on 7 October 2023.
Mrs Wood said: “It obviously touches people and brings them on side really. We’d have children coming running up to us singing bits from our songs. It was just lovely.”
